About 15 people have been reportedly killed and many others injured after a truck crashed into four buses at the Imo State University (IMSU) junction in Owerri, the state capital.
Witnesses said the truck on Saturday evening collided with vehicles coming in the opposite direction due to a brake failure in the Ugwu-Orji area.
“I witnessed the incident with my two eyes. The trailer was carrying stones and was driving at a high speed when it failed to stop at the IMSU junction,” a witness told TheCable.
“What happened was that the driver was trying to avoid hitting those passengers and mini-buses that usually occupy the junction when it veered off the opposite lane, hitting more than four small buses loaded with passengers.
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“I am very sure that 15 people died at the spot, while several others who sustained various degrees of injuries were rushed to the hospital. It was terrible.”
Another witness said there was no presence of security personnel when the incident happened to offer immediate service to the accident victims.
“I was surprised that for more than one hour after the accident, the police that always mount roadblocks and even officers of the Nigeria Civil Defense Corps, whose state office is near the junction, never showed up to help out,” he said.
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“It was good-spirited individuals and drivers that offered to carry the victims to the hospital and morgue.
“But if it is to collect money on the road and molest innocent citizens for no just reason, you will see them everywhere.
“Does it mean that the government no longer has an emergency response team whose duty it is to offer immediate help to accident victims?
“If there was such a person to attend to the victims, the situation could have been remedied. It is unfortunate.”
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Egejuru, spokesperson of the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) in Imo, could not be reached for comments at the time of filing this report.
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