JOHN ADAMS MINNA
Three separate trailer accidents occurred in different locations in Niger State in the last one-week leaving no fewer than 15 people dead and over 40 people critically injured with goods worth hundreds of thousand destroyed.
Two of the accidents occurred in Minna town last week when two trailers, one carrying tomatoes and another one carrying cabbages, summersaulted within two days interval at the same spot while negotiating a roundabout.
Although no life was lost in the two accidents, goods worth hundreds of thousand on naira were destroyed.
However, on Sunday, another accident involving a trailer conveying tomatoes and pepper to the southern part of the country occurred at Gbadafu village along Bida-Mokwa road, leaving not less than 15 people dead and over 40 others injured. The incident occurred at about 5:00 pm.
According to eyewitnesses, apart from the produce, the trailer was conveying, it was said to be overloaded with people sitting atop of tomato baskets.
It was learned that in an attempt to negotiate a bend around Gbadafu town, a few kilometres from Bida town, the driver of the vehicle lost control, forcing the trailer to overturn throwing its content on the passengers. Many of them were either killed or injured.
Both the dead and the injured were rushed by good Samaritans to the Federal Medical Centre, Bida, where they are currently receiving treatment.
The morgue of the hospital was said to be congested with bodies of the dead while the injured who could not be admitted at the emergency wards were being treated on the bare floor after the old mattresses in the stores had been retrieved for use.
As at 12 noon on Monday, medical personnel were still battling to save the lives of some victims.
The Head of Clinical Services of the hospital, Dr Adedeji, Olugbenga Adekanye, confirmed that ten bodies were brought to the hospital from the accident spot and were deposited at the morgue while three others who were brought in alive, died because of the severity of their cases.
According to Dr Adekanye, the major challenge faced in the management of the victims was “bed spaces” at the emergency ward, adding that most of the victims were being attended to on the bare floor.
“We are coping; I don’t think we require any assistance from outside, but our major problem is bed spaces.”
Dr Adekanye, however, said that those with “minor injuries” have been treated and discharged.
All efforts to get the reactions of officials of the Federal Road Safety Corps was abortive as the cell phones of the officials were switched off.
However the Director-General of the Niger State Emergency Management Agency (NSEMA) Alhaji Ibrahim Inga, when contacted said his men had been despatched to Bida to assess the situation.