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Thirteen persons were killed and 10 others injured in a fatal accident at Saapade, Ogun State end of the Lagos-Ibadan expressway on Wednesday evening.
Amongst the dead were four male adults, seven female adults and two female children.
Reports said the accident occurred when a speeding truck collided with two commuter buses after one of its tyre burst.
The vehicles involved were a yellow Mazda bus with registration number, KTU 93 XW; a white Toyota bus with number plate, KEY 847 XA and a MAN diesel truck with number plate, KAB 97 XA.
The Sector Commander, Federal Road Safety Corps(FRSC), Ogun State, Clement Oladele, who confirmed the accident, said 37 people, made up of 20 males, 15 females and two children were involved in the crash.
“The accident occurred on the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway by the Saapade Bridge near Ogere, Ogun State, where a diversion was created by the construction company working on rehabilitating the corridor.
“The unfortunate accident involved three vehicles, including a speeding truck heading for the Lagos area of the expressway.
“The truck suddenly suffered a tyre burst and in the process collided head-on with two other speeding commuter buses heading for the Ibadan area of the expressway, with one of them in the process of attempting to wrongfully overtake within the diversion area,” he said.
The sector commander, while expressing shock at the accident, commiserated with the victims’ families.
He requested the relations to contact the FRSC command at Ogere or the Victory Hospital, Ogere, where the victims were taken to for treatment.
“The corpses of the victims of the crash have been deposited in the Ipara Mortuary, while the obstruction has been cleared with the aid of the RCC, the construction company, which supported rescue operations with its heavy-duty equipment,” he added.
Oladele said the tragedy would have been averted if motorists driving in diversion areas at construction zones observed the maximum speed limit of 50 kilometres per hour and avoided overtaking till they were clearly out of diversion areas to avert head-on collision.
He added that passengers inside vehicles being driven recklessly should caution their drivers and where they refused to be cautioned, the FRSC should be contacted on the toll free number 122.