Nigerian authorities say 20 people died over the weekend following two truck-related traffic accidents.
According to authorities, in one of the accidents, the truck carrying a 12-meter-long (39-foot) container was traveling over a bridge when the driver lost control and collided with the bus while picking up passengers. . The container fell onto the bus, crushing those on board.
Five men, two women and two children were among the dead.
The Lagos State Traffic Management Authority, or LASTMA, said on Sunday it had rescued four people after hours of operations in Ojuelegba, in the southwestern part of the state.
Olufemi Oke-Osanyintolu, Permanent Secretary of LASTMA, said that “We have completed the operations. We have put the bodies in the morgue and the other one who was rescued has been evacuated to the hospital where she is receiving the appropriate treatment. Let’s see it comprehensively; We’re going to investigate.”
Oke-Osanyintolu said high barricades erected by the authorities at the foot of the bridge to prevent trucks from ascending the span had been removed.
He said the police will continue to investigate the matter.
Such accidents are common in Nigeria’s economic hub, where truckers forced to strap down containers to their vehicles rarely do so and many roads are in poor condition.
In another incident, authorities say 11 people were killed on the Soka bridge on the Lagos-Benin highway when a truck driving against traffic collided with another commercial bus.
Last year, LASTMA recorded more than 100 truck and tanker accidents between January and July.
The accidents often spark outrage and criticism over the government’s inability to monitor and regulate the movement of heavy vehicles through often-crowded places in the state.
On Sunday, citizens asked the authorities to ban the movement of trucks during the day, but Oke-Osanyintolu said that could harm economic activities and the government will look for a better way forward.
