By Olasunkanmi Akoni
Tragedy occurred again at the notorious Otedola Bridge, Lagos, along Lagos- Ibadan Expressway, in the early hours Wednesday, when a yet to be identified male person lost his life in a fatal multiple-auto accident.
According to an eyewitness, Remilekun Abiola, the accident involving five vehicles, occurred about10 am during the early morning downpour at Otedola Bridge, outward Lagos to Berger.
Though the immediate and remote cause of the accident could not be ascertained as at press time, eyewitness attributed over speeding and sloppy nature of the road by Otedola Bridge, coupled with the heavy rainfall which affected the visibility of motorists as the cause.
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At press time, one of the victims, an unidentified male, was recovered dead from the debris of the crash by men of the Lagos State Emergency Management Agency, LASEMA and Lagos State Ambulance Service, LASAMBUS, who raced to the tragic scene.
There were different versions on the number of casualties. While eyewitnesses said many people died, LASEMA confirmed one person dead.
The injured victims were immediately rushed to various hospitals for treatment.
Other rescue teams at the scene, include Men of the Rapid Response Squad, RRS, of the Lagos State Police Command, Lagos State Fire Service, Federal Road Safety Ciro’s, FRSC, among others.
The accident led to chaotic gridlock along the axis as motorists were trapped in the resultant traffic for several hours.
As a result of the gridlock, other motorists had to make use of alternative routes.
Confirming the report, Chief Executive Officer LASTMA, Femi Oke-Osanyintolu, said the agency raced to the scene promptly, on receipt of distress call of an auto crash.
According to him, “LASEMA successfully rescued an adult female stuck in a crushed white Toyota Hilux with registration number KRD 797 XN involved in a multiple road crash.
“At the scene of the incident (Otedola Bridge), a yet to be identified adult male; the driver of the crushed Toyota Hilux lost his life and the trapped female named Toyin was rescued using cutters and spreader to extricate victims.
“The trapped adult female who was rescued alive and extricated by LASEMA team was handed over to LASAMBUS which administered first aid treatment while ensuring she was lucid all through the administration of the treatment before being transferred to the Trauma Centre by the old Toll Gate at 7up.
“The yet to be identified adult male who lost his life in the incident while driving the said Toyota Hilux with registration number KRD 797 XN was bagged with his remains handed over to the State Environmental Health Monitoring Unit, SEHMU for proper disposal.”
Recovery of the five vehicles involved in the multiple accidents, including; a DAF Truck with registration number LSD742 XK (Lagos), Toyota Sienna space bus with registration number: NEN 16 XQ (Anambra State), Ogun State Bus Mass Transit Scheme EPE 679 XT and a bus (OG L112), was coordinated by LASEMA.
The vehicles were later recovered off the road for smooth flow of vehicular activities to resume.
