There was a long tailback and a petrol tanker was unable to brake in time and so rammed the queue, causing an explosion and fire which destroyed over 100 vehicles and killed many people.
The police and other rescue services did not offer any assistance until some time after the blast, and so numerous bodies were removed by relatives or volunteer rescuers and privately buried, whilst others were cremated in the fire.
Most sources simply give a vague "over 100 dead" despite the official count of 96 recovered bodies, and offer statements that "the final death toll could be much higher".
The Nigerian police reported that they had recovered 115 destroyed vehicles from the roadway in the aftermath of the accident, implying a substantially higher death toll than initially quoted.
The police claimed that when one of their vehicles arrived at the still blazing accident site shortly after the crash, it was attacked by a furious mob, set alight and destroyed, the four occupants escaping only after receiving a beating.