- Says 29 Seriously Injured
President Muhammadu Buhari has expressed his deepest condolences to the families of the people who lost their lives during a fatal accident which occurred in Ikeja, Lagos state, Thursday.
The president while reacting to the accident described it as distressing and extremely sad.
This was contained in a statement issued by his Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, Mallam Garba Shehu.
“The accident at the level crossing involving the train and the BRT staff bus is distressing and extremely sad. I pray for the souls of the deceased and quick recovery of the many who were injured,” the President said.
It would be recalled that The New Diplomat had reported that a train coming into Lagos from Abeokuta rammed into a Lagos State Government staff bus that was about crossing the PWD/Sogunle rail and dragged the bus from Shogunle to the PWD area of Ikeja.
Two people were initially confirmed dead and several were injured in the accident.
However, the casualty figure in the accident has now risen to six.
Governor Babajide Sanyo-Olu of Lagos state, who was at LASUTH disclosed that four of the victims were confirmed dead at the hospital. Two people were confirmed dead at the accident scene.
Giving further update, the governor said that 85 passengers, including dependants of the staff, were involved in the accident.
Two women were immediately declared dead after the bus was crushed by a moving train.
The governor said that 29 persons suffered serious injuries, 42 suffered moderate injuries while eight persons suffered mild injuries.
“Unfortunately we have recorded six fatalities, two were brought in dead from the site while we have four additional deaths in LASUTH,” Sanwo-Olu said.
“85 passengers were in the bus from the immediate statistics that was conducted and to separate various degrees of injuries 42 were classified as moderate injuries, 29 were classified as serious injuries while 8 were mild injuries.”
Sanwo-Olu also said the driver of the bus was reckless in his driving and has been arrested by the police for questioning.
“At about 7:30 in the morning a bus number 33, which is one the Lagos state staff bus. This morning bus number 33 moving towards from Isolo and heading towards Alausa with 85 passengers, mostly civil servants, with a few dependents had a very fatal accident at the rail crossing around PWD in Sogunle,” he said.
“The driver, I’m told, has handed himself over to the Lagos State police command. So he’s currently with the police command and so we have not been able to ask him questions and inquiries about what happened.”
