13 pedestrians killed as trailer’s brake fails

Juliana Francis
Thirteen people were killed and scores of others severely injured, when a trailer skidded off the highway at the old toll gate area of Sango Ota, Ogun State and rammed commuters. 
The victims and the injured were said to be commuters, standing by the roadside, when the trailer apparently lost control.
Most of the victims were passengers who had just stepped off different buses. Among the dead and wounded were also snacks and bread sellers. They were all badly mashed before the truck finally crashed into a ditch and stopped.
The accident caused panic and within minutes, people from different streets in the area, trooped to the scene to the scene, checking corpses and injured victims, to know if their loved ones were among the victims. Wailings and lamentation reverberated as some recognized their relations.
An eye witness said that nothing less than 10 people died instantly immediately the trailer into them, crushing and mangling bodies in its unstoppable flight.
Among those being rushed to the hospital to by sympathizers, two died before they could reach the hospital.
Another eye witness explained that the trailer, loaded with sharp sand was coming from Lagos and heading towards Sango, when it lost control and killed the victims.
It was gathered that the driver of the truck, while descending the slope between Ajegunle Bus Stop and Toll Gate, tried to apply the brake but discovered that the brakes could no longer respond.
Apparently determined not to ram into vehicles in front in the thick traffic jam, the driver swerved into the right hand side and crushed about five vehicles and the commuters standing at the bus stop.
An eye witness who described the accident as horrible, added, “This Toll Gate is becoming a permanent spot for accident. I saw four bodies and many seriously injured people.”
Officials of the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), members of the Nigerian Police and other emergency workers were all sighted at the scene, assisting in recovering bodies.
It is also gathered that those who were rushed to hospital were presently fighting to stay alive as the severity of the injuries could later lead to death.
The Ogun State Police Command spokesman, Muyiwa Adejobi, said that he was not yet aware of the accident.