By Steve Oko, UMUAHIA

The Abia State Government has pledged to cover the medical expenses of all victims injured in the tragic billboard collapse that occurred on Wednesday in Aba, the commercial nerve centre of the state.

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Dr. Victoria Onwubuiko, Director General of the Abia State Signage and Advertisement Agency (ABSAA), disclosed this in an exclusive interview with Vanguard. She confirmed that eight persons were involved in the accident, with one fatality.

The incident happened during a heavy downpour with strong winds at the Salad Market junction, near the GIA Event Centre along Aba-Owerri Road. A giant billboard collapsed suddenly, crashing onto several tricycles and trapping both riders and passengers underneath.

Emergency responders and sympathizers raced to the scene to rescue the victims, many of whom sustained injuries and were rushed to the hospital.

Describing the incident as “very unfortunate,” Dr. Onwubuiko assured that the state government has taken full responsibility for the treatment of all hospitalized victims.

“The State Government is already taking care of all the hospitalized victims,” she said.

She also revealed that the advertising agency responsible for the collapsed structure — a Lagos-based company — has been contacted and has dispatched a representative to the state. Discussions are ongoing with the family of the deceased victim.

According to Dr. Onwubuiko, the ill-fated billboard had been standing for about five years and might have collapsed due to structural deficiencies.

“Maybe it wasn’t properly mounted. Apparently, there was not enough supervision then. You know some of these guys cut corners if not properly monitored,” she noted.

In response to the incident, ABSAA has announced strict new enforcement measures to prevent future occurrences. The DG stated that the agency now supervises billboard construction from the foundation stage to ensure compliance with safety standards.

“Currently, we supervise them right from the time they are digging the soil for mounting the billboards to ensure they get the required depth,” she said.

She further vowed that the agency would conduct a statewide audit of all billboards and immediately dismantle any that fail to meet technical and safety requirements.

“We will also check all the billboards across the state and anyone that is not technically sound will go down,” she declared.

The Abia State Government’s prompt response has been praised by residents, even as calls grow for tighter regulation and oversight to prevent such avoidable tragedies.