The police in Kano said their investigation revealed that one of the nine victims of the recent explosion, Michael Adejo, was dealing in “illicit storage of toxic chemicals and other hazardous materials.”
A statement by police spokesman, Abdullahi Haruna Kiyawa, said five bottles of different brands of acidic liquids, three bags of potassium, one jerry can of mixed chemicals, 6.5 cartons of snuff and five drums of polymer were recovered in his shop which collapsed due to the explosion.
He said further investigations revealed the explosion may have occurred as a result of “mixed chemical/gas reactions exposed to a source of heat, such as fire, a spark or increase in pressure resulting in combustion/shock waves that created an explosion which can have shattering effects.” Kiyawa said nine persons were certified dead by a medical doctor, while eight others, including students of Winners Kids Academy opposite the collapsed building, sustained injuries.
