What caused Wednesday’s explosion in Nigeria’s northern city of Kaduna that left at least 7 people dead and many more badly injured? The police said the deadly early morning blast was not caused by a bomb, dousing fears that it was the handiwork of the violent Islamic sect Boko Haram, which has been blamed for a wave of bombings in Nigeria in recent times. But local newspapers on Thursday quoted eyewitnesses as saying the explosion was caused by a bomb detonated by two men who rode into the Ori Apata area of the city, where the incident occurred, on a motorcycle, meaning it bore the hallmark of Boko Haram attacks
‘We are suspecting that it was an explosion from within and not sabotage from outside,’ Kaduna State Commissioner of Police, Balla Nasarawa, said.
The state police command’s spokesman Aminu Lawal corroborated his boss’ statement, saying: ‘For now it is an explosion. Our bomb experts are already trying to establish the cause of the explosion and until investigations are concluded, we cannot say precisely that it was a bomb explosion.’
But the eyewitness accounts reported by the newspapers was vivid.
‘I was standing outside my shop when I saw two people on top of a motorcycle coming at top speed when something suddenly exploded. The person at the back of the motorcycle had thrown the bomb towards the shop. I fell down and immediately ran inside my shop but the
roof of the shop fell on me and I managed to crawl outside again,’ Mr. Fabian Uzichukwu, one of the shop owners in the area populated by vehicle spare parts dealers, said..
‘One of the two people on the motorcycle died immediately, but the other person who was carrying the bomb lost an arm and also sustained first degree burns. He started running down the street crying for help before he was rushed to a hospital,’ he added.
A Kaduna resident interviewed by PANA said the blast had triggered fears in the city, more so as it came a few days after a former Boko Haram spokesman, Ali Konduga, was jailed three years by a court in the capital city of Abuja.
‘Many here feel it was Boko Haram’s response to the court decision, and that there would be more explosions,’ said the resident, who identified himself simply as Sadiq.
The National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) said the remains of seven persons were recovered from the scene, but the local media put the number of those who died at 12.
The police have yet to give casualty figures.