Eight persons died and 15 others were injured in an explosion that occurred early on Wednesday at Muna Motor park, Maiduguri, National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), confirmed. The agency made the confirmation in a statement issued by Mr Sanni Dati, Head of Media, National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), in Abuja. Dati said that a rescue team from NEMA responded to the incident and evacuated the injured and the dead to University of Maiduguri Teaching Hospital and Borno State Specialist Hospital. He said the motor park, located on the outskirt of Maiduguri, was used by motorists travelling to areas, such as Dikwa and Gamboru Ngala in Borno. Dati said security had been beefed up at the scene of explosion.
The police had earlier confirmed five persons dead after a suspected female suicide bomber detonated explosives near the garage. Mr Victor Isuku, the spokesman for the Police Command in Borno, said that about 8.30a.m. an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) explosion occurred in a Golf 1 car. He said the vehicle, No JERE 349 XA, body S/No RTEAN 7179 taxi colour was carrying five people – four females and a male driver. Isuku said the explosion occurred around Muna garage along Maiduguri /Gamboru Ngala road when the taxi was attempting to join vehicles heading to Gamboru town. He said the four female passengers and the driver died but added that the bomber was suspected to have boarded the vehicle on the road. “The suicide bomber who is reasonably believed to be one of the female casualties, was picked along the road,” Isuku said. He ,however, said that the explosion did not affect other vehicles.
