- Begins collection of victims’ families DNA for identification
The Lagos State Government is perfecting plans to prosecute the owner and driver of the ill-fated fuel tanker which exploded on Otedola Bridge, inward Ojodu-Berger, along Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, last Thursday.
Lagos Commissioner of Police, Imohimi Edgal disclosed this to newsmen, yesterday. on Monday.
The Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Mr. Adeniji Kazeem had, at the weekend, written to Edgal to advise him on the relevant provisions of the law that could guide the ongoing investigation which would lead to possible prosecution.
Confirming receipt of the letter while briefing Government House Correspondents, after the Security Council Meeting chaired by Governor Akinwunmi Ambode, Edgal said investigations into the incident are ongoing and that government will not allow vehicles which pose serious danger to residents on the road.
The police chief, who briefed journalists alongside heads of other security agencies in the state, specifically commiserated with those who lost loved ones in the tragic incident, a also commending emergency responders who quickly raced to the scene to keep the causality figure low.
“As regards investigation into the matter, it is in top gear. I have just received a letter from the office of the Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice which stated very clearly charges which we are going to prefer against the driver and the owner of that tanker.”
The death toll rose to 12, from an initial 10, yesterday.
Commissioner for Health, Jide Idris, also told journalists, yesterday, that 10 bodies were recovered from the scene of the incident (as opposed to the nine initially reported).
Idris added that others are responding to treatment.
The tragic explosion occurred when the tanker was heading out of Lagos towards the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, which engulfed over 54 vehicles.
Many escaped abandoning their vehicles. Firefighters later battled and put out the inferno.
Barely 24 hours after the incident, another crash occurred along the same bridge on Friday.
According to the Rapid Response Squad (RRS), two vehicles, a commercial bus, and a Toyota Hiace colluded while driving inward Lagos.
The RRS said the incident was a result of reckless driving on the part of the commercial bus driver who was on high speed against the traffic.
“Reckless Danfo driver speeding on 1 way had a head-on collision with Toyota Hiace bus entering Lagos opposite scene of yesterday’s tanker fire,” the RRS tweeted on Friday.
Meanwhile, following the tragic incident, the Lagos State Government has announced restriction of the movement of fuel tankers to designated trailer routes in the state.
Giving update on the tanker accident, the Attorney General said families of the victims have started submitting relevant samples to aid DNA test.
“I can confirm that today (yesterday), families who lost their loved ones to the accident have started reporting at the Lagos State DNA Forensic Centre; for submission of reference samples that would be used to identify victims.”
