Truck accident kills one in Lagos

– A truck driver on April 5 rammed into a stationary tanker at the Agege area of Lagos state

– An official of the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA) said the accident was caused by over speeding judging from the impact on the truck

– The director of the Lagos State Fire Service, Rasak Fadipe, said the driver of the truck died on the spot

File photo from an accident scene in Lagos

A yet to be identified truck driver on April 5 died in an auto crash that occurred at Oke-Odo in Agege area of Lagos state.

Daily Post reports that the crash which happened at about 5.am was blamed on over-speeding, adding that the truck driver died on the spot after ramming into a stationary tanker conveying black oil.

An official of the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA), who declined to mention his name, confirmed that the driver was on high speed when the incident happened.

“The driver of the tipper hit the fuel tanker with so much force that the gear of the vehicle broke off and the impact also punctured the tanker. The black oil leaking from the tanker was much and the fire service had to be invited to prevent disaster,” the official said.

Speaking also on the incident, the state’s spokesperson for LASTMA, Mahmud Hassan, said the accident was avoidable if the truck driver had applied caution while driving.

Speaking also at the scene of the accident, the director of the Lagos State Fire Service, Rasak Fadipe, said the driver of the truck died on the spot.

“Drivers need to be careful and drive with caution to avert avoidable loss of lives. Around 5am, a tipper driver rammed into the rear of a stationary tanker which was conveying a petroleum product.

“The impact was serious and the driver died on the spot. His corpse was handed over to policemen from the Oke-Odo division,” Fadipe said.

Most accidents are blamed on over speeding because when a vehicle is on high speed the vulnerability of the driver losing control in any slight wrong maneuvering is pending. The Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC) has repeatedly warned motorists against over speeding, but most driver chose to remain adamant.

Just recently a truck driver also died in Abule Egba area of Lagos state in an early crash. Witnesses say the accident happened around 4.30am and it involved a truck and diesel laden tanker.

The FRSC corps marshal, Boboye Oyeyemi, recently told Nigerians that a total of 98 road crashes and 77 deaths were recorded nationwide during the Easter holidays.

He disclosed that the commission arrested 6,223 traffic offenders adding that 358 people sustained various degrees of injuries, while 165 of the victims were rescued alive from different crashes.