No fewer than four people have been confirmed dead and nine others seriously injured after a truck collided with a fully-loaded commercial bus at the Ojota end of the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway on Thursday.
PUNCH Metro learnt that the driver of the unregistered Iveco truck was at top speed when he lost control and rammed into the back of the LT bus, with number plate KRD 326 XG.
Five others, who sustained minor injuries, were reportedly treated and discharged by the rescue agencies which responded to the emergency.
A witness, who identified himself simply as Bode, said the accident happened around 5am.
He explained that the truck, after crushing the bus, somersaulted three times and skidded off the road.
He said, “Both vehicles were going inward the Toll gate area. The truck driver was, however, at full speed when he lost control. While trying to manoeuvre, he hit the bus from the back. The vehicle was mangled.
“The collision made the truck somersault three times. It moved to another lane, but no vehicle was approaching; that minimised the damage. It came to a stop after hitting a tree.”
Another witness, Seyi, said while three people died on the spot, the fourth victim died in an ambulance on the way to a hospital.
“I could not even look at the casualties, because the scene was too gory,” he added.
PUNCH Metro was told that the truck driver, who was also injured and traumatised, had been admitted in the hospital.
It was learnt that officials of the Lagos State Emergency Management Agency, Lagos State Traffic Management Authority, Lagos State Ambulance Services, Federal Road Safety Corps, Nigeria Police Force, State Environmental Health Monitoring Unit and the Lagos State Fire Service, responded to the crash.
Officials of SEHMU reportedly took the corpses of the victims.
The General Manager of LASEMA, Michael Akindele, said the accident was caused by reckless driving, adding that three corpses were recovered from the scene.
He said, “We received an alert via the 767/112 emergency numbers of Lagos State of an accident involving an LT commercial bus and an articulated truck. Preliminary investigation carried out by the Emergency Response Team revealed that the incident was caused by the recklessness of the truck driver.
“Nine passengers sustained serious injuries, while five others sustained minor injuries and were immediately rushed to the Trauma Centre by the FRSC and LASAMBUS. Three passengers were also trapped and extricated by LASEMA with the use of light duty equipment. The dead victims were two adult males and one adult female.”
Akindele urged motorists to always exercise caution while driving, adding that complying with the speed limit rule would forestall traffic accidents in the state.
The Police Public Relations Officer, SP Dolapo Badmos, confirmed the accident, saying four people died.
She said, “Three died at the scene, while other victims were taken to the emergence unit.
“One of those in critical conditions gave up, making a total of four deaths for now. Investigations are ongoing.”
The spokesperson for LASTMA, Mahmud Hassan, said the agency assisted in clearing the wreckage to free up traffic.
http://www.punchng.com/four-killed-nine-injured-lagos-crash/
by ROTMANLUV 2023-07-08, 17:34
