11 dead in Ondo crash, Lagos container crushes nine

No less than 20 people died on Sunday in two road accidents in the states of Ondo and Lagos.

While 11 people lost their lives in the town of Ore along the Benin-Sagamu Expressway in the Odigbo Local Government Area of ​​Ondo State, nine died in Ojuelegba, Surulere, Lagos State.

PUNCH subway gathered that the Ondo crash involved a commercial Marcopolo bus and a truck.

The victims were reportedly burned beyond recognition.

A driver, who was at the scene of the incident and spoke on condition of anonymity, said the two vehicles collided and later caught fire.

He explained that the accident happened when motorists went from one side of the dual highway to the other due to a faulty truck blocking the road.

He said: “Motorists and commuters took to one side of the highway because a truck fell and blocked the other side of the road. For the past three days, vehicles on their way to Benin had chosen one-way traffic because the lorry was blocking their way and there was no one there to clear it off the road. That has been the case for the past three days.

“The bus came from Benin and headed for Lagos; it dropped off some passengers at Ore. The bus then collided with the truck and caught fire at around 6am today (Sunday).

Federal Road Safety Corps Ondo sector commander Ezekiel Son’Allah confirmed the accident and added that it happened due to speeding by the truck and bus drivers.

He said: “Eleven people died in the crash caused by road traffic and speeding.”

In the Lagos accident, nine people were pronounced dead and one person was rescued alive after a truck carrying a 20-foot container fell onto a commercial minibus in Ojuelegba in the Surulere area of ​​the state.

PUNCH subway learned that the incident happened around 12:45 a.m. when the minibus with number plate KTU921YG stopped to pick up some passengers.

The passengers were said to have boarded the bus, which was ready to leave when the truck, which was also trying to get onto the bridge, lost control, fell on its side and crushed the minibus.

The permanent secretary of the Lagos State Emergency Management Agency, Olufemi Oke-Osanyintolu, confirmed the incident in a statement.

He said: “On arrival at the scene, a truck carrying a 20-foot container was found to have landed on top of a commercial bus. Further investigation revealed that the bus was picking up passengers when the truck lost control and fell over the side of the bridge.

“After hanging the container load using the agency’s forklift and cutting off the top of the canister with light rescue equipment, a single adult female was freed alive and taken to the trauma center.

“The final number of victims is nine fatalities, including four adult males, three adult females, one boy child and one girl child. An adult female was rescued alive.

“The bureau’s heavy Goliath and the teams of Onipan and Cappa are on the ground. The agency’s ambulance, LASG fire brigade, federal fire brigade, LASTMA and Nigeria police have been working on this situation, which has now been finalized.”

Lagos State Traffic Management Authority spokesman Adebayo Taofiq said agency officials rescued the survivor and handed her over to emergency services.