In the early morning on 12th December, a fuel tanker crashed and exploded at Likomba, near Tiko, in southwestern Cameroon, killing at least eight people, the local authorities said.

The driver lost control of the truck due to brake failure when going down a hill and hit several cars and buildings before the vehicle exploded. And Viang Mekala, who was working as an officer at the administrative unit where the accident happened, told the press that the driver was unable to stabilize the truck because of brake failure.

“The tanker truck is totally burnt. Other vehicles got burnt. The blaze also destroyed tens of houses,” Mekala told reporters.

Some of them were also wounded and taken to the Tiko district hospital. A rescue team in the army was still trying to contain the inferno and estimate the damage. However, the emergency responders replied that there might be an increase in the number of people killed.

There are past cases of fuel truck explosions in Cameroon, where there are no pipeline systems, and thus, the delivery of petroleum products has to be done through roads or trains. Poor roads characterized by potholes and unroadworthy vehicles are some of the factors that lead to frequent traffic accidents, which have claimed hundreds of lives annually.