No fewer than 13 persons were on Wednesday feared dead when a Commuter Bus they were traveling in had a head on collision with a Mack Trailer along the Owerri – Aba Express way at Agbala near Owerri, the Imo state capital.
It was learnt that the Bus which belonged to a popular Transport Company had 14 occupants and 13 of them died on the spot.
The incident which caused a traffic gridlock along the ever busy expressway as sympathizers thronged the scene to have a look at the dead passengers, just as both the Police and the Officers of the Road Safety Commission had a hectic time controlling the surging crowd.
According to eyewitnesses, the incident occurred when a Mack truck coming from the Owerri end of the expressway was trying to overtake another truck at the Agbala section of the Owerri/ Aba Expressway.
The driver of the bus which was also on top speed could not maneuver out of the road because of the ditch which was dug by the side of the road by the Arab Contractors handling the dualization of the express way.
They added that immediately the accident occurred that the driver of the Mack truck disappeared from the scene.
Emeka Ajoku an indigene of Agbala, who witnessed the accident blamed it on the construction company handling the dualization of the road, stating that “if the contractors had not dug ditches on the sides of the road that the accident could have been avoided as the bus driver would have veered off the road to safe himself and the passengers, but it was not possible.
However when contacted the state sector Commander of FRSC, Yusuf Salami said that six persons in the bus died on the spot while nine others were seriously injured.
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