20 dead, 36 injured in Kogi road crashes, says FRSC

Twenty persons died and 36 injured in separate auto crashes involving Toyota Hiace buses in two weeks in Kogi state, the Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC) has disclosed.

Kogi Sector Commander of FRSC, Samuel Oyedeji, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lokoja, yesterday, that the fatalities were from three separate accidents.

Oyedeji described the fatalities within just two weeks as very worrisome and unfortunate, considering the efforts of the corps to reduce highway crashes.

The sector commander explained that the most worrisome was the accident of September 3 that left 12 dead and six injured, when an 18-seater bus collided with a truck along Obajana–Lokoja road.

“The dead victims were given mass burial at the Central Mosque, Obajana, while the injured were taken to First Nation Orthopaedic Hospital,Zariagi, for medical attention.The property of the victims and the vehicle are at Obajana Police Division.”

“On September 10, we had a lone accident involving a Toyota Hiace bus, which left five persons dead and 15 injured at Zango, close to Chukwumerije Roundabout within Lokoja metropolis.Just on September 13, three persons lost their lives again, while 15 were injured at Omoko village along Abujai-Lokoja road, where another Toyota Hiace bus lost control and crashed abound 10:30a.m.,” he said.

The FRSC boss said joint rescue patrol teams of Zebra 16 Abaji and Zebra 13 Gegu were at Wednesday’s accident scene and rescued the 15 injured victims.