The Uganda Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) has clarified about the fire incident that caught one of the fuel tankers at Entebbe International Airport yesterday evening.
According to the statement, the authority says the fire was caused by leakage from one of the tanks as it was being drained.
“An incident involving a fire outbreak occurred at one of the fuel tanks at Entebbe International Airport on May 18, 2021. We have established that the fire was triggered while workers at the fuel firm were draining the remaining fuel segments from one of the tanks,” part of the statement read.
The fire alarm went off at 16:05 hours and was immediately responded to by the Airport Fire and Rescue Service team at 16:10 hours. The team managed to put out the fire in time.
It has been established that the staff at the aviation fuel firm were carrying out routine maintenance on fuel tank 4 to drain out the remaining fuel segments using a diesel pump whose drainage tube disengaged from the pump causing fuel to spill and trigger the fire outbreak.
“The Airport Fire and rescue services team were able to contain the fire and control the spread of the fire to other fuel tanks. The authority will give a comprehensive report within 24 hours.”
