Sallah tragedy:8 die in road mishap
From Emmanuel Ogoigbe, Warri
Saturday, November 28, 2009

At least eight persons were killed and several others wounded on Thursday when a tanker carrying crude oil rammed into a waiting passenger bus at the Ughelli roundabout in Warri, Delta State.

Saturday Sun gathered that the incident which occurred at about 6am was allegedly caused by some policemen who were on routine check at the Ebrumede-Ughelli roundabout while attempting to collect tips from the bus driver. 
A dependable source further revealed that when the bus carrying market women from Bayelsa who deal in palm oil got to the spot, the police stopped the driver and demanded bribe from him without minding if the vehicle was wrongly parked.

An eyewitness said as the driver and his conductor alighted from the bus to attend to the police, one of the women equally came out to ease herself leaving the rest inside the vehicle.
Immediately the three came out of the bus, a trailer, suspected to be carrying crude oil from Ughelli which was being chased by policemen, rammed into the waiting bus and killed the women instantly and later dragged the bus into a ditch.

There was loud wailing as people could not contain their emotion on sighting the mangled bodies of the women. 
When Saturday Sun visited the scene of the incident, human parts with thick blood stain filled the area, just as some jerry cans filled with palm oil were scattered everywhere. 
It took a team of soldiers from the Joint Task Force led by Col. A. Lawal several hours to clear the wreckage as hundreds of women, children and men thronged the area to catch a glimpse of the worst accident in recent times in the area.

Besides, hundreds of okada riders abandoned their businesses for the period and joined forces with the military personnel to clear the area. The policemen who allegedly caused the accident were not spotted in the rescue as they disappeared immediately after the incident. 
Further investigation revealed that the deceased who were mainly Ijaw and Urhobo had gone to Bayelsa State to buy palm oil for their daily business. 

It was learnt that the fuel tanker which had gone on illicit oil bunkering activity in an area in Ughelli was being pursued on the Ughelli highway until it crashed into the waiting passenger bus.
We gathered that immediately after the incident occurred, the tanker driver and his boy who attempted to run away were caught by people around and held until members of the JTF arrived and took them to their office. 

Meanwhile, the police post at Ebrumede has been deserted for fear of imminent attack from the families of the dead but the station is being guarded by military men.

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