A fire erupted in a section of the Dangote Refinery in Lagos on the afternoon of Wednesday, June 26, 2024, causing significant concern in the surrounding area. Eyewitnesses reported seeing large plumes of smoke and hearing loud noises emanating from the refinery.
The fire, which started around noon, was concentrated in the effluent plant of the refinery, according to reports gathered by Ratecaptain. Videos circulating on social media depicted thick black smoke billowing from the site, though it appeared that the fire was localized and did not spread to other parts of the complex. Engineers on-site were observed monitoring the situation.
Despite the dramatic visuals, emergency responders, including the Lagos State Emergency Management Agency (LASEMA), had not yet arrived at the scene at the time of reporting.
Owned by Aliko Dangote, the Dangote Refinery is a significant entity in Nigeria’s oil sector, anticipated to be the largest single-train refinery globally. The incident prompted immediate action to investigate the cause and evaluate the impact on operations.
In a press statement, the Dangote Group confirmed the fire was a minor incident and had been swiftly contained. “We have swiftly contained a minor fire incident at our effluent treatment plant (ETP) today, Wednesday, 26th June. There is no cause for alarm as the refinery is operating, and there is no recorded injury or harm to any of our staff on duty,” the statement read.
Further investigations are ongoing to determine the exact cause of the fire and to ensure the safety of all refinery operations.
