A vessel, MT Lina, yesterday exploded and went up in flames at the Lagos anchorage (about 30 minutes boat ride from the Lagos port) killing a crew member as three others suffered various degree of burns and recuperating at the Lagoon Hospital in Apapa.

The vessel, a 5,000 Dead Weight  which belongs to Panafric Oil and Gas Company, had an engine fault which was being repaired when the explosion occurred following a spark.

The vessel which had about 3,000 metric tonnes of Petroleum Motor Spirit, PMS, was later rescued by a team from the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency, NIMASA.

It was, however, not clear whether Panafric owned the vessel or the product it was carrying at the time of the incident, but effort to speak with the management of Panafric proved futile as nobody was willing to make any comment.

Victims of the accident, according to some crew members who spoke to Vanguard, are in critical conditions.