ACCRA — The National Petroleum Authority announced its “Stay Back, Stay Safe” public safety drive following a fiery disaster that claimed six lives and injured nine others. The February 14 incident unfolded when people used cutting tools to breach a petrol tanker carrying 54,000 liters along the Accra-Nsawam Highway. Sparks ignited petrol vapors, engulfing the tanker, a VIP bus, three saloon cars and four motorcycles in flames.

Godwin Yaw Konu, the NPA’s Director of Business Development, revealed the campaign on the sidelines of the Africa Extractives Media Fellowship training in Accra. He issued a stark warning to the public. “Please stay back from the truck. Don’t go near it,” Konu said. “Your life is more important than the little product you are going to siphon.”

The initiative targets a dangerous pattern. Just two weeks earlier, on January 28, 2026, a diesel tanker overturned at Nsawam Okanta on the same highway. Firefighters from the Suhum Municipal Fire Station doused it with foam and water, averting disaster.

Officials with the Ghana National Fire Service and National Road Safety Authority have issued repeated alerts about the risks. Yet the practice persists. Police at the Nsawam highway section report residents hurling stones at officers to access spilled fuel. Economic pressures fuel the desperation, with some viewing leaks as a rare opportunity amid hardship.

The GNFS stresses that petrol vapors ignite easily. A spark from tools, a vehicle engine or mere friction can trigger an explosion in seconds. Ghana’s dependence on road transport for petroleum—without a national pipeline—keeps such scenes common.

The NPA plans to deploy the campaign through media blasts, community outreach and joint efforts with emergency agencies. All regions will hear one clear directive: treat tanker accidents as no-go zones and call the Ghana National Fire Service or Ghana Police Service right away. No amount of fuel justifies the mortal peril, the authority stated.

This marks the regulator’s sharpest response to date. Past warnings failed to curb the behavior. Now, a coordinated push aims to reshape habits at crash sites nationwide.