The Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) has confirmed the killing of five persons in multiple road crashes along the Ugwuonyeama axis of the Enugu -Onitsha Expressway.

The crash, which involved a trailer, a commercial bus and a car occurred on Thursday evening.

The Corps also confirmed  that 18 other persons sustained varying degrees of injuries and are recuperating at the hospitals.

Route Commander and Public Enlightenment Officer, Enugu State Sector Command,  Theophilus Okoduwa, confirmed the incident to newsmen in Enugu on Friday.

Okoduwa said the crash occurred at about 3:18 p.m at the Ugwu-Onyeama axis of the expressway, near the Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) plant, and involved 25 persons comprising 13 males and 12 females.

He said 18 victims, comprising seven males and 11 females, sustained injuries, while four males and one female died from the impact of the crash.

According to him, the vehicles involved were a Dongfeng trailer, a Mitsubishi L300 commercial bus and a Honda car.

“Within nine minutes of reporting the incident to the FRSC Sector Command at about 3:25 p.m., our officers and marshals, as well as patrol vehicles and an ICU ambulance, arrived at the scene,” Okoduwa said.

He said the injured victims were taken to Tex Hospital, Ninth Mile Corner, for immediate medical attention, while the five bodies were deposited at Ekochin Mortuary, Ninth Mile, after medical officials confirmed their deaths.

Okoduwa said traffic had been diverted while efforts were ongoing to clear the obstruction caused by the wreckage, adding that preliminary investigations indicated that wrongful overtaking and speeding might have contributed to the crash.

Residents on Friday expressed deep concerns about the rate of carnage on the area, even when the rehabilitation work embarked upon by the federal government had been completed.

Minister of Works, Dave Umahi had after an inspection of the road in April this year, ordered it’s reopening of the dual carriageway for easy flow of traffic.