The Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN) has tasked filling station outlets on proactive fire safety measures meant to safeguard their premises from fire outbreaks and avoidable losses.
Chairman of IPMAN, Enugu Depot Unit, Mr. Chinedu Anyaso, gave the charge on Sunday, in Enugu while speaking on the need to check incidents of fire outbreak in the oil and gas sector.
Anyaso, who oversees the association’s affairs in Anambra, Ebonyi and Enugu States, said that his unit had mandated each petroleum product outlet to have reeady-to-use fire extinguishers and buckets of sands before commencement of operation each day.
He said that each filling station must also have a sticker banning the making of phone calls, and phone numbers or phone codes of the nearest fire fighting/service station.
“We are also partnering with the federal fire service to have a seminar to educate our members, and their filling stations’ attendants on how to use and handle fire extinguishers.
“They will also learn how to ensure that the content of the fire extinguishers do not leak off from its containers due to poor handling, and storage as well as know when a fire extinguisher expires.
Read also: Ilobu community cries out to Tinubu, IGP, DSS, others over land dispute
“Our members will also be exposed to other things necessary to have and know, to ensure that one is alert on any possible incident of fire within a filling station.
“For now, we only recorded a fire incident in one of the filling station outlets in the remote area in the state, and it was caused by answering a phone call close to a pump nozzle dispensing fuel in a filling station in January, 2025,” he said.
According to him, that incident was regrettable and members are clearly aware that incidences of fire in any filling station outlet leads to huge losses and it is not what anyone will wish to happen.
The chairman also called on its members to be sensitive about the atmospheric temperature before offloading products from petroleum trucks/tankers especially during extreme hot weathers.
“It should be dispensed in the morning hours or it should wait in the evening hours when the intensity of the sun and hot weather reduces,” he added.
Apart from covering independent petroleum marketers in Enugu, Anambra and Ebonyi, the IPMAN Enugu Depot Unit also comprises independent petroleum marketers in some parts of Abia, Imo, Kogi and Cross River States.
