STORY IN BRIEF
There is something inescapably mysterious about the explosion that rocked Kaduna last Wednesday.  This report attempts to explain the many mysteries and conflicting accounts of how it happened

It was a communiqué from the pit of Hell: As Northern leaders closed their Peace and Unity meeting Boko Haram sent its own communiqué of violence. It was sudden and impacting. Nobody expected it but it happened. In fact, some of the guests who had come for the Peace meeting were still in town when the explosion occurred.

Typical of what members of the now dreaded Ahlan Sunnah Lid Da’waati wal Jihad Yaanaa (brothers), popularly known as the Boko Haram sect do, it was a mere drive-bye engagement.

Two men on a motorbike were spotted with a strange object and the next thing was an explosion. That typifies the eye witness’ accounts.

MYSTERY ONE

Igbo Motor spear parts dealers, the major victims of last Wednesday’s explosion that sent shivers down the spine of residents of Ori Akpata, Ogbomosho Street, in Kaduna, which led to the collapse of blocks of stalls and residential houses, are in sharp disagreement with the Kaduna State Police Command over the actual cause of the explosion.

While the traders are insisting that it was a bomb that went off in front of their stalls, the Police said their investigation by Police bomb experts showed that the bang was caused by expired chemical wrongly handled.

MYSTERY TWO

The traders said that as last Thursday, 12 of their colleagues and two tenants had died. The Police disagreed, saying they could only confirm seven.

The Chairman of Igbo Spear Parts Dealers’ Association, Ogbomosho Road, Kaduna, Mr Sunday Mba, said “from all I know, we lost 12 of our members here when that bomb exploded. Two of our tenants, both of the Yoruba stock, were killed in their homes”.

MYSTERY THREE

According to Mba, “from what we have been able to find out, we lost at least N200 million in that explosion.

“In fact, about N20 million in cash was burnt. In one shop, a man lost about N8 million cash, that he was about to take for a transaction. Now eight of our members are critically ill”, he said.

But, the Kaduna Police boss on his part said, “as far as the police can confirm, the unfortunate and sad incident claimed 7 lives. I have not been informed of any casualty today. We have some that are critically ill, and they have been taken to various hospitals for treatment”.

He also denied eyes witnesses accounts to the media which suggested the explosion was caused by a bomb.

“And let me read to you what the preliminary findings of our expert bomb units said in its reports. Part of reports reads, ‘the explosion was neither caused by a bomb, nor an Improvised Explosion Device (EID), but as a result of poor handling of very reactive chemicals. The blast was a mechanical explosion from reactive materials. It was caused by compressed cylinders, and jerry cans containing reactive materials, some of which must have expired without the knowledge of the handlers. Acids could react like that when the pressure of the acid inside the container exceeds that of the external pressure of the container’ ”, he said.

The Public Relations Officer of Kaduna State Emergency Management Agency, Mr. Abubakar Zakari, backed the claims of the Police, when he told Sunday Vanguard that seven people were killed adding that 4 critically wounded victims have been transferred to the Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria (ABU) Teaching Hospitals. He added that two were taken to the Barau Dikko Teaching Hospital, Kaduna, and another taken to the Army Referral Hospital, Kaduna.

Shop owners’ accounts of the incident

Fabian Uguchukwu (32) owns one of the affected shops. He spoke to newsman in tears.

“It was around 9 this morning (Wednesday). It was not long that I opened the shop. We sell motor spare parts and car batteries. Three boys were working on my Lister Generator. They are of 16, 17 and 22 years of age. I saw two boys on a small motorcycle. They were carrying something in between them. When they reached our shops, they stopped as if to adjust the thing. The next thing I heard was a loud explosion. The ground shook. I can’t tell you how I escaped. It is only God”, he said, stifling a bawl.

“The three boys were killed; because the generator also exploded and the building came down on them. Oh God! . . .”

He said that other affected shops also had their power generating sets working, and that they also exploded in resonance to the first explosion.

Emmanuel Eburo (27) also tends one of the shops. He narrated his experience to the Press as thus:

“I saw two men on a bike. When they reached these shops, it was like someone called out to them and they stopped. They were carrying something in a box or something like that. Then I heard the explosion. I was saved by the miracle of God. Our generators also exploded, bringing down the shops. Right now, some of my friends are still trapped in that flame. I have never experienced this in my life. I don’t believe that we are under any attack, because I have been living here as long as I was kid and I have never witnessed this kind of problem. It was like they were heading somewhere”, he said.

Yahaya Maiyaki Danasabe (31), who claimed to have witnessed the incident from a far distance as he was just entering the street from the western side, said: “There were two men on a motor bicycle. They must have been coming from Sardauna Crescent and heading somewhere. The one at the back was carrying something like a carton between him and the one riding the bike. Then as they reached these shops, I don’t know what happened. But there was bright light followed by an explosion. I ducked on the ground. The bike was on fire. One of the boys was sliced into pieces, but in two main parts. The other had his head blown off. Arms and body parts were blown far away. As I was running to the scene, the building collapsed. I ran back. I heard about four more explosions. But none near the impact of the first one. Then the building collapsed and fire started”, he said.

Kaduna may be calm but people are divided on the cause of the blast.

Some believe that the lethal bang was caused by a bomb.

Others insist that the Police version of the incident was correct.

For now, the public wait in bathed breath and in killing anxiety.