By Friday Idachaba, Lokoja.
The Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), Kogi State Sector Command has confirmed 19 persons dead and eight others injured in an auto crash which occurred on Sunday on Lokoja-Obajana road.
The State Sector Commander of FRSC, Mr Kumar Tsukwam who confirmed this to newsmen on Monday in Lokoja said some of the survivors sustained bruises, cuts, dislocations, fractures, and fire burns.
According to Tsukwam, the fatal accident occurred at Gadabiu community on the Lokoja-Obajana road, Lokoja Local Government Area of the state at about 4pm on Sunday.
Describing the accident as “fatal and very sad”, the Sector Commander said among the 19 victims burnt to death, five children were children.
He explained that the mishap involved an articulated vehicle (Truck) and an 18-seater Toyota Hummer Bus heading to Abuja from the Southern part of the country.
Explaining further, Tsukwam said that the accident resulted from a head-on collision when the Hummer Bus, on high speed, tried to overtake an articulated vehicle only to face another oncoming articulated vehicle from the opposite direction, leaving no room for escape.
“It was very unfortunate, because it was caused by speeding and wrongful overtaking and involved 27 persons with only eight survivors.
“Our rescue operation team and the Police were able to rescue the eight survivors and rushed them to Fisayo Hospital, Obajana, for immediate medical attention”, he said.
The commander warned that the highways were not race roads as he appealed to motorists to avoid speed and wrongful overtaking.
He also tasked motorists to always keep to traffic rules and regulations to help the Corps and the Federal Government in reducing road traffic crashes and carnage on roads across the country. (Ends)