By BANNERNEWS Reporter
No fewer than 12 persons were killed on Sunday when a speeding truck rammed into bystanders at Gada-Biyu village along the Abuja–Lokoja highway.
The Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Sector Commander of the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), Mr Felix Theman, confirmed the incident in a telephone interview yesterday.q
Theman said the crash, which occurred at about 11:47 a.m., involved a truck fully loaded with coal coming from the Lokoja axis, as well as three other vehicles — an 18-seater Sharon bus and two Volkswagen Golf cars.
According to him, the truck, allegedly travelling at high speed, suddenly lost control and veered off the road, crashing into bystanders who were waiting by the roadside to board vehicles.
He said 12 persons died on the spot, comprising four adult males, two adult females, four male children and two female children. Many of the victims, he added, were residents of Gada-Biyu.
Three other persons sustained varying degrees of injury in the affected vehicles and were promptly rescued to Abaji General Hospital for medical treatment.
The FRSC commander disclosed that the truck driver and his conductor fled the scene immediately after the crash, apparently to avoid being attacked by an angry crowd.
He said the corpses of the deceased had since been released to their families for burial at Gada-Biyu, attributing the crash to excessive speed, loss of control and dangerous driving.
Theman further revealed that the sector command would engage the management of the transport company involved, noting that this was the second reported accident linked to the same truck on the Abuja–Lokoja highway.
He added that the Yangoji Unit Command of the FRSC had been directed to relocate roadside passenger-loading points at Gada-Biyu to safer locations to prevent a recurrence.
