Three people were killed and nine others were injured in a multiple road crash on the Abuja/Keffi Expressway Friday night.
The incident occurred about 9 p.m. diring rush hour and involved eleven vehicles. Eye witness accounts blamed
a heavy-duty truck that lost control.
Tobi Adebayo recounts: “A trailer going towards Keffi lost control and rammed into a vehicle that also rammed into another, and it kept happening like that. About 11 vehicles were involved in the accidents.
“12 people were rushed to the hospital out of which three have died. The remaining nine are still in the hospital receiving treatment. The driver of the trailer managed to escape from the scene and ran away.”
The FCT police spokesperson, Josephine Adeh, confirmed the incident and disclosed that the police had started contacting the families of the victims.
“We received a distress call and our men immediately rushed to the scene. They rushed the victims to the hospital where the doctors certified three dead.
“Nine are currently receiving treatment. Efforts are ongoing to contact the families of the victims and to arrest the driver of the trailer,” said the Police.
Meanwhile, a fatal accident on the Kugbo Nyanya Expressway, near Karu bridge, Abuja, involving a Federal Road Safety Corps, FRSC, towing van and Dangote truck has claimed the life of the Corps tow truck driver, leaving three persons critically injured.
FRSC in a statement on Friday disclosed that the crash occurred at exactly 04:02am while its truck on tow services was removing a broken down vehicle along the aforementioned route.
FRSC Corps Marshal, Dauda Ali Biu expressed shock over the death of the Corps tow truck driver and commiserated with the entire Management and Staff of the Corps over the loss.
“Investigation into the crash revealed that a total of four people were involved, out of which three sustained different degrees of injuries while one person who happened to be the driver of the tow truck was killed. Only the two vehicles, the truck and FRSC tow truck were involved.
“The Corps Marshal who was deeply saddened by the crash prayed for the soul of the deceased to rest in peace and directed immediate evacuation of every obstruction caused as a result of the crash”, the statement read in part.
The VIO Area commander in Kugbo, Walter Amechi explained that the accident was caused by mechanical failure.
He said the driver in the towing van was found dead, trapped in the vehicle, while the driver of the Dangote truck, conductor and one other passengers sustained injuries.
The Divisional Traffic Officer, Bawa Danmaigona recalled that there was also a serious accident on the same axis yesterday which left several vehicles damaged.