Emmanuel Adeyemi, Lokoja
No fewer than eight persons lost their lives yesterday in Lokoja, Kogi State capital, when a trailer laden with petrol lost control, rammed into some vehicles and crushed them. The accident, which occurred at Felele community along Lokoja -Abuja highway, involved four tricycles, two motorcycles, three cars and a bus. Seven people sustained serious injuries.
A witness, Moses Johnson, told our correspondent that the accident occurred around 8.45am, adding that the trailer was coming from Lagos with petrol when it lost control as a result of brake malfunction, leading to the killing of innocent citizens.
Our correspondent saw the trailer in flames while officers of the Federal Fire Service drafted to Lokoja for the governorship election were making concerted effort to quench the fire that had taken over one lane of the highway. The Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) officers were also on ground to evacuate bodies and other victims of the accident that sustained injuries.
One of the FRSC officials, who declined to mention his name, while speaking to our correspondent, attributed the accident to brake malfunction suffered by the petrol laden tanker with registration number JEG141XA DAF. He said 17 people were involved in the accident. He noted that the injured persons had been taken to the Federal Medical Centre and Specialist Hospital both in Lokoja by men of the FRSC while the bodies have been deposited in the morgue.