A morning in Nigeria woke by explosion

It was a normal, busy Monday for commuters living in Abuja's southern suburbs. They woke up early, gave their beloved ones a good-bye kiss and left home to catch a bus. But it turned out to be a black Monday and many people did not have a second chance to say good-bye. An explosion which occurred at 06:45 a.m.(0545 GMT) rocked a bus station near the Nyanya market, killing at least 71 people and injuring another 124, police spokesman Frank Mba said. Mba said a suicide bomber drove a red car into the bus station, detonated the explosive device in the car and destroyed a dozen buses. Thousands of residents stood on both sides of a narrow street in front of the Nyanya market, watching the disorder on the spot. Dozens of soldiers, policemen and government officials were maintaining order and directing the traffic. The police cordoned off the bus station, bodies of the victims were cleaned and the injured have been sent to the hospital. But one could still trace the blast, with blood brushing the ground, fragments of the bodies spreading around and smoke-laden air pervading the town. "I have counted at least 15 bodies and their belongings such as cell phones and wallets just scattered over the ground," said a volunteer engaged in the rescue efforts. He said at least 20 people, only a small part of the injured, had been sent to the hospital before several fire fighting trucks and rescue staff arrived on the scene. Dozens of buses and cars were parking in the bus station when the blast rocked the populous area near the Nyanya market. At least 16 buses and several cars were damaged. The ground was blasted in several pits which the policemen were measuring. While there was no claim of responsibility for the explosion, sources say the incident may be related to Boko Haram, an extremist Islamic group in Nigeria, Africa's biggest economy and top oil producer. Visiting the blast scene, President Goodluck Jonathan expressed his condolences over the victims and pledged to solve the issue of Boko Haram. Jonathan blamed the organization for having targeted schools, churches, mosques, villages and government facilities, killing thousands in its five-year campaign to make Nigeria an Islamic state. Source: XINHUA