There was an explosion at the Canadian High Commission building in Nigeria

There was an explosion in the building of the Canadian High Commission in the Nigerian capital Abuja. As a result, two people are dead and two others hospitalized. The causes of the incident, which occurred around noon local time, was reported to journalists by Mercy Douglas, an employee of the fire department:

"A tanker that was inside the generator building exploded ... killing two men who worked for the company managing the generator."

Foreign Minister Melanie Joly has already confirmed the information about the explosion, writing the following:

"We can confirm there was an explosion at our High Commission in Nigeria. The fire is out and we are working to shed light on what caused this situation. I send my heartfelt condolences to the families of the 2 people killed in this tragedy."

At this time, information on which national(s) have been affected is not yet available. Ottawa updated its travel advisory for Canadians traveling to Nigeria, saying the High Commission is "closed until further notice."

According to the department's filing with the Senate foreign affairs committee, as of August 2022, there were 12 Canadian diplomats and 32 local staff in Abuja.