The Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) has confirmed that at least 19 people lost their lives, while eight others sustained varying degrees of injuries in a fatal accident that occurred on Sunday along the Lokoja–Obajana road in Kogi State.
This was confirmed by Mr. Kumar Tsukwam, the State Sector Commander of the FRSC, in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Monday in Lokoja.
It was noted that out of the 27 occupants involved in the crash, only eight survived. Tragically, among the 19 confirmed dead were five children who were burnt beyond recognition.
The FRSC official stated that the tragic incident occurred around 4 p.m. at Gadabiu community, within the Lokoja Local Government Area.
The accident involved a Toyota Hummer bus travelling to Abuja from the southern part of the country and an articulated truck.
Preliminary investigations revealed that the crash was caused by excessive speed and wrongful overtaking.
Tsukwam explained that the Hummer bus attempted to overtake another truck when it collided head-on with an oncoming articulated vehicle.
“It was a devastating collision. The bus was speeding and overtook inappropriately, only to face an oncoming truck with no room for escape,” he said.
Tsukwam added that survivors sustained injuries ranging from bruises and cuts to dislocations, fractures, and burns.
The victims were immediately rushed to Fisayo Hospital in Obajana for emergency medical care by FRSC personnel and police officers who responded to the scene.
The FRSC Commander lamented reckless driving, especially speeding and dangerous overtaking, which he said were major causes of such avoidable tragedies.
“Our highways are not racetracks,” Tsukwam stressed. “We urge all road users to drive responsibly and obey traffic regulations to prevent further loss of lives.”
Earlier in April 2024, SaharaReporters reported that an auto crash at the Okene bypass on the Okene–Lokoja highway in Kogi State also claimed 19 lives.
Following the crash, it was learnt that the vehicles burst into flames, making recovery efforts more difficult for the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC).
A statement by FRSC Assistant Corps Marshal and Corps Public Education Officer, Jonas Agwu, noted that the emergency rescue teams of the agency:
“Endured over three hours of inferno in their bid to rescue road traffic victims at the scene of a fatal crash that claimed 19 lives on Sunday,” Agwu said.
Agwu said the FRSC emergency rescue teams deployed to save the victims could not achieve the desired results as their efforts were hindered by the fire inferno that engulfed the two vehicles.
