Five persons
yesterday lost their lives when the driver of a cement-laden articulated truck
belonging to Dangote Cement, lost control, ramming into a taxi cab and a
commercial tricycle (Keke NAPEP), at the Nataco junction, on the Abuja-Lokoja
highway.
Among those
who lost their lives were two school-aged children, while eight others
sustained varying degree of injuries in the accident, which occurred around
9:00a.m. in Lokoja, Kogi State capital.
The Sector
Commander of Federal Road Safety Corp (FRSC), Olusegun Martins, attributed the
incident to brake failure. He explained that the trailer was coming from
Obajana when the driver lost control due to brake failure and rammed into the
commercial tricycle and one Nissan taxi, at the Nataco junction.
He however
confirmed that a female student of the Kogi State Polytechnic and two others
were killed on the spot, while eight others who sustained injuries were
evacuated to the state Specialist Hospital Lokoja for treatment.
While
appealing to the Federal Government to construct a flyover bridge at the Nataco
junction, to reduce the incidence of accidents around the area, he charged
drivers to maintain and ensure the good condition of their vehicles, to prevent
brake failure and other unforeseeable vehicular faults.
An eyewitness
account said the driver of the truck lost control around the polytechnic gate.
Students of the school subsequently went on rampage on confirmation of the
death of their colleague, barricading the highway and making bonfires, leading
to a gridlock along the corridor.
An
eyewitness, Mr. Emmanuel Adams, called on the state government to intensify
effort in sending away people who sell by the roadside, saying the casualties
could have been more if it was a market day.
Also
speaking, head of the emergency unit of Specialist Hospital, Lokoja, Mr.
Okpanachi Stephen, confirmed that eight persons were brought to the hospital
from NATACO junction where the accident occurred. He noted that some of the
victims have head injuries while others were bleeding from the cut they
sustained on their bodies.
Secretary to
Kogi State Government, Mrs. Arike Ayoade Folashade, said the state would be
compelled to make it compulsory for every truck driver, particularly Dangote
Cement, to undergo psychiatric test.
“They have
to go through psychiatric and drug test to ensure they are not under the
influence of any hard drug as some of them may not even possess valid driver’s
license. We have to collaborate with the FRSC to get the machine for drug
testing and alcohol. If it exceeds the normal level we have to prosecute them
and possibly jail them,” she said.
Meanwhile,
one person was confirmed dead in an accident that occurred yesterday in Agbede,
along Ogbere-Benin Expressway in Ogun State.
Spokesman of
the State Traffic Compliance and Enforcement Agency (TRACE), Mr. Babatunde
Akinbiyi, who confirmed the accident to journalists in Abeokuta, disclosed that
it involved a Volvo truck marked, FKJ 27 XT and a Toyota Sienna bus with
registration number AGL 141 EL.
According to
him, the accident was caused by the driver of the Toyota Sienna car who drove
against traffic and had a head on collision with the truck.
Akinbiyi
said: “The Sienna bus that drove against traffic was a commercial bus and was
loaded with turkey. The driver of the bus died on the spot.”
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