Four die, 25 injured in Ogun auto crashes
Two persons lost their lives while 10 others sustained injuries after an unregistered Toyota Corolla car plunged into the Ososa River at Ijebu-Ode, Ogun State.
Apart from the accident which occurred at the weekend, two other people died while 15 others were injured in two separate accidents involving five vehicles. It was learnt that the first accident occurred on the Sagamu-Ijebu-Ode Expressway about 12.40a.m. on Saturday. Twelve persons, including a male and four female adults as well as seven children, were said to be involved in the crash.
Though the details about the lone accident were sketchy, it was learnt yesterday that two of the victims, a male adult and one female child, lost their lives. The injured four females and six children, who survived the accident, were taken to the General Hospital, Ijebu-Ode.
The Public Education Officer, Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC), Ogun State Sector Command, Florence Okpe, who confirmed the incident yesterday, said the victims’ bodies were also deposited in the mortuary of the same hospital in Ijebu-Ode.
Okpe said the second crash, which occurred about 8.20a.m., at Fidiwo, on the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, claimed two lives. According to her, the two vehicles involved in the accident were registered with number plates LSD 266CK and Toyota Sienna AGL554. According to her, one of the crashed vehicles was just booked by FRSC patrol team for traffic infraction before the incident. She said: “But barely three minute drive from the patrol team, the vehicle collided with another vehicle travelling outward Ibadan, caused by wrongful overtaking at a no-overtaking zone being a construction area.”
Okpe added that 11 persons were involved in the crash. She said those injured were taken to the Olabisi Onabanjo University Teaching Hospital (OOUTH), Sagamu while the dead were deposited at the FOS, Ipara mortuary. In the third crash, the official said it occurred about 6.15p.m. by the Car Park C turning on the Lagos- Ibadan Expressway.
The three vehicles involved, she said, were a Mitsubishi Space bus with registration number MUS488BC, blue Toyota Hilux marked AD1657RS and golden Honda Accord car marked APP75CZ. Okpe, however, noted that though no life was lost, five persons were injured out of the total of 10 people involved in the crash. She said FRSC rescue team removed the obstruction caused by the crashes and restored free flow of traffic. Meanwhile, the FRSC Sector Commander, Clement Oladele, has advised motorists to always drive cautiously on the highways.
Oladele, in a statement by Okpe, noted that “the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway and Abeokuta Itori-Sango Ota-Lagos roads are currently undergoing rehabilitation and are prone to high presence of construction vehicles, which requires caution and strict adherence to construction zone speed limit”.
He added: “Those travelling on the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway within the 5km stretch of road where traffic is diverted by RCC, the construction company working around Sancrete and Fidiwo, close to Four Square Church at Ajebo/ Alapako/Ogunmakin are to obey the maximum speed limit stipulated on road signs along the corridor and avoid overtaking, to prevent possible collision with vehicles travelling in opposite direction. “They are to also obey traffic regulations and follow instructions from FRSC patrol teams and other traffic agencies.”
