20 Dead In Two Separate Truck Related Accidents In Southern Nigeria

Authorities in Southern Nigeria said Sunday that 20 people, including children, were killed in two separate truck-related accidents, many of whom burned beyond recognition.

Dr. Olufemi Oke-Osanyintolu with the state emergency response agency said that in one of the accidents that took place in the Ojuelegba area of Lagos, a truck carrying a 12-meter-long (39-foot-long) container was driving on a bridge when the truck lost control and slid over the edge of the bridge and slammed into a commercial bus that was picking up passengers within the accident location.

Those riding the bus were crushed when the container crashed into it.

Only one woman survived the collision, and nine people, including two children, died on the scene.

Locals in the area hurried to the scene immediately after the incident. Still, due to the weight of the 20-foot container, no victims could be removed until authorities arrived with rescue equipment almost an hour later.

He further added the police would investigate the matter more thoroughly. "Further investigations revealed that the bus was picking up passengers when the truck lost control and fell over the side of the bridge," he said, as per Premium Times.

According to Nigeria's Road Safety Ministry, 11 people died in a separate event when a truck collided with a commercial bus at the Soka bridge in Ore, Odigbo Local Government Area of Ondo State.

The truck from Benin Road collided with the Marcopollo bus when it reached Soka Bridge. The bus caught fire instantly.

The Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) troops needed some time to clear the massive traffic jam that had developed on the significant Benin-Lagos road due to the accident.

The FRSC Unit Commander in Ore, Sikiru Alonge, confirmed the disaster and said that the 11 passengers were wholly burned beyond recognition, Premium Times Reported.

Babatunde Fashola, minister of works and housing, on Jan. 24, encouraged the Nigerian Association of Road Transport Owners (NARTO) to prioritize truck driver training to lower road accidents.

Fashola made the appeal while speaking at the annual general meeting of the organization in Abuja. He expressed regret for the high number of highway fatalities brought on by reckless driving despite the Nigerian government's efforts to fix the roads over time.