Five passengers of an Onitsha bound commercial vehicle on Friday lost their lives when the Toyota Previa vehicle they were travelling with collided with a truck near Abba junction in Anambra, on the Enugu- Onitsha expressway.
Mr. Sunday Ajayi, the state Sector Commander, Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), confirmed the deaths in a telephone interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN).
Ajayi, who said four adults and a child lost their lives in the unfortunate incident, noted that the accident occurred around 6.19 a.m. on Friday, blaming it on route violation by the truck driver.
“We were there to rescue the victims of the accident, where five souls were lost.
“From the information I have with me, I learnt that the truck was taking one-way and because of that, they had head-on-collision and five people were killed instantly.
“We have six people involved in the accident which meant that only the driver of the truck is alive.
“It is wrong to take one – way on the highways; it is dangerous and may lead to death.
“We advise people not to lay too much claims on their rights. They should be conscious while driving on the road. If someone is doing wrong on the road, they should avoid such driver to stay alive.
“The law will surely catch up with whoever does the wrong thing on the road,” he said.
Ajayi said the bodies of the deceased had been deposited at the Enugu-Ukwu General Hospital mortuary.
An eyewitness, who said the commercial vehicle took off from Enugu, also blamed the truck, which was heading towards Awka for the accident.
The source appealed to FRSC to sensitise and enlighten commuters on the need to always utilise their routes to avoid such fatal accidents.
