LASEMA Confirms Four Dead In Truck Collision On Lagos-Ibadan Expressway

The Lagos State Emergency Management Agency (LASEMA) has confirmed the death of four persons, including a police officer, in a multiple truck collision that occurred on Thursday morning at Kara Bridge, outward Lagos, along the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway.

THE WHISTLER earlier reported that there were no fewer than eight casualties in the crash.

According to a preliminary report signed by the Permanent Secretary of LASEMA, Dr. Olufemi Oke-Osanyintolu, the agency received distress alerts at about 6:49 a.m. and promptly activated the state’s emergency response plan from its Command and Control Centre in Alausa, Ikeja.

Upon arrival at the scene around 7:09 a.m., responders discovered that five trucks had been involved in a multiple collision.

The vehicles included a mini truck loaded with cartons of cracker biscuits, a fully loaded long truck, a 40-foot containerised truck, a trailer carrying sardines, and a private tow truck.

LASEMA said preliminary investigations revealed that the crash was caused by a mechanical fault and reckless driving, which led the trucks to ram into each other.

“The multiple collision occurred due to a mechanical error and reckless driving, causing the trucks involved in the accident to ram into each other,” the report stated.

“One of the tractor heads detached and fell into the lagoon below the bridge, trapping the driver and Truck Assistant inside the truck.”

The agency confirmed that two of the victims died at the scene, while two others were pronounced dead on arrival at the hospital. All the deceased were adult males.

As of the time of the report, recovery operations were still ongoing. Two of the accidented trucks — a 40-foot containerized truck and a tractor head trapped in the lagoon — were yet to be recovered.

The statement added that traffic control, crowd management, and cordoning measures had been implemented to prevent secondary incidents, while the bodies of the victims were evacuated by the State Environmental Health Monitoring Unit (SEHMU).

LASEMA also disclosed that two of the vehicles had been towed to OPIC for safekeeping, while a low-bed truck laden with bags of sugar had been recovered and handed over to the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA).

Responders at the scene included the LASEMA Response Team, LASEMA Pre-Hospital Care Unit, LASTMA, Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), Nigeria Police Force, and SEHMU.