Squatters residing near the Tema-Accra motorway disregarded safety precautions as they gathered around an overturned bulk road vehicle (BRV) to illegally extract diesel fuel following an early morning accident on Friday.
The incident which occurred at about 5:15 am some 50 metres away from the Accra end of the tollbooth according to the Director of Public Relations at the Ghana National Service, Timothy Affum attracted a huge crowd of squatters who brought along the popular “Kuffuor Gallons” in their quest to siphon the fuel for sale to unsuspecting motorists.
The Man Diesel truck with registration number, GE 4130 – 20, transporting 45,000 litres of diesel, Assistant Chief Fire Officer (ACFO) Affum said had cart the cargo from Tema heading to Accra when the incident occurred.
As of 11 am when Graphic Online visited the scene, a few squatters were seen scooping fuel substances from the surface of a nearby stream along the storm drains from the East Legon Boundary Road linking the motorway.
A motorcyclist, who gave his name as Prosper Sottie and his team who had come to the scene with gallons in a tricycle (aboboya) got a little.
He said he will go to sell to machine operators since the quality was no longer good for use by vehicles.
Sottie nevertheless was also seen negotiating with some of the squatters who were successful in siphoning some of the fuel which he said looked useful.
Safety
To ward off the crowd, a police reinforcement team, he said was also called in to manage the traffic spillover from the gridlock that formed on the stretch as a result of the incident.
“To also reduce the probability of a fire outbreak as a result activities of the crowd, the team further applied the firefighting foam to the fuel, suppressing it from combustion.
ACFO Affum counselled motorists from purchasing what may seem to be cheap fuels in such situations, mindful of the dangers they could pose to their lives and vehicles as well.