Ten persons lost their lives while six others sustained varying degrees of injuries in a fatal road traffic crash that occurred on Sunday night. The fatal accident, which occurred at about 8:05 pm at Saapade Bridge along the Ibadan-Lagos Expressway, involved a white Sinotruk truck and a white Toyota Hiace bus with registration number EKY 290 YM. The spokesman for the Ogun State Sector Command of the Federal Road Safety Corps, Afolabi Odunsi, confirmed the incident in a statement issued on Sunday. Odunsi disclosed that 18 people were involved in the crash, comprising 15 adult males, two adult females, and one male child.
According to the statement, nine adult males and one male child died in the crash, while four adult males and two adult females sustained varying degrees of injuries. Two adult males escaped the accident unhurt. The Federal Road Safety Corps attributed the crash to a combination of speeding, wrongful overtaking, and dangerous driving. Odunsi said, “A total of 18 persons were involved in the crash, comprising 15 adult males, 2 adult females and 1 male child. Sadly, 10 persons lost their lives, comprising 9 adult males and 1 male child, while 6 persons (4 adult males and 2 adult females) sustained varying degrees of injuries. Two adult males escaped unhurt. Preliminary investigation revealed that the crash was caused by speed violation (SPV), wrongful overtaking (WOV) and dangerous driving (DGD). The truck driver reportedly reversed on the highway after missing his direction, while the approaching bus, travelling at high speed, attempted to navigate through the limited space available and rammed into the truck.”
He added that the FRSC rescue operatives arrived promptly at the scene and evacuated the injured victims to Victory Hospital, Ogere, for medical treatment, while the bodies of the deceased were deposited at the FOS Mortuary, Ipara. Personnel of the Nigeria Police Force from the Ishara Division have taken custody of the crashed vehicles, and arrangements have been made for their evacuation. The crash scene has been cleared, and traffic is currently flowing freely along the axis.
Meanwhile, the Sector Commander, Corps Commander Oludare Ogunjobi, has commiserated with the families of the deceased and wished the injured victims a speedy recovery. Ogunjobi warned motorists, particularly commercial drivers and truck operators, against reversing on highways, excessive speeding, dangerous driving, and other traffic violations that endanger lives. The sector commander reiterated that road users should always obey traffic rules, maintain safe speeds, and use designated turning points whenever they miss their routes, adding that these simple precautions can prevent needless loss of lives on highways.
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