The Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dele Alake, has sent a team of officials from the Federal Mines Office to conduct an on-site assessment following Sunday’s blast at a mining site in Sabon Pegi, Mashegun Local Government Area of Niger State, North-Central, Nigeria.
The Special Assistant on Media to the Minister, Mr. Segun Tomori who revealed this said the move aims to investigate the cause of the explosion and mitigate its effects.
He added that Alake has directed relevant ministry officials, including the Mines Inspectorate Department, to carry out forensic analysis of soil samples collected from the blast site to determine the source of the explosives, which would guide the next course of action.
According to the Minister, “Security agencies have been put on the trail of the suspected culprit. He will be apprehended to face justice.”
The federal government remains committed to ensuring that mining operators adhere to strict environmental and safety standards to avert a recurrence of the unfortunate incident.
The statement said preliminary Preliminary investigations suggest that the explosion was caused by the illegal stockpiling of explosives by one Yushua Maikampala, a resident of New Bussa.
Mr. Tomori explained that Mr. Maikampala is believed to have been involved in purchasing and storing explosives and their accessories in a house in Sabo Pegi, Mashegun Local Government Area.
He further said according to eyewitnesses, the explosion was triggered by an electrical spark around 7:00 AM local time on Sunday, 26th destroying the building where the explosives were stored and damaging approximately 20 other houses in the vicinity.
At least two fatalities have been confirmed.
Mr. Tomori noted that the Minister expresses his condolences to the victims, describing the incident as avoidable given the negligence surrounding the handling and illegal storage of explosives by the alleged culprit.
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