A car-bomb explosion has rocked a bus garage in Maiduguri on Wednesday, October 12, 2016.
The bomb blast was reported in Maiduguri in north eastern Borno state by the Nigeria’s emergency agency, NEMA.
NEMA said on Wednesday that the garage blast might not be unconnected to repeated attacks by Islamist militant group, Boko Haram, which has held unto the area in the last seven years.
“There is a reported case of bomb blast around Muna Garage,” the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) tweeted, referring to an area in the city.
“Emergency workers are on their way to the scene,” it said.
A Reuters witness saw Red Cross vehicles near the area.
There have been varying casualty figures released to the media, but a source at the Maiduguri Specialist Hospital told Daily Trust that at least 18 bodies had been dropped in the hospital’s mortuary and more were being expected.
However, NEMA is reporting eight deaths and also says that 15 people were left injured in the attack.
“About eight (8) persons lost their lives, fifteen (15) injured persons were evacuated to Specialist and Teaching Hospitals, Maiduguri,” it tweeted.
It’s not yet clear if the attack was caused by a suicide bomber, but it is believed to be the work of terrorist sect, Boko Haram.
“I thank God for sparing my life. I don’t know if it is a suicide bomber, we just heard the blast and I saw myself covered with dust,” a trader, Usman Kachalla said.
