TWELVE persons, including a mother and her twin children, were feared killed in an accident that occurred, yesterday, at Oja-Oba Market area of the Ibadan South East Local Government Area of Oyo State.
Police put the casualty figure at four, but some eyewitnesses claimed the number of lives lost could not be less than 12.
While the accident left several people injured, several commercial cars and property were crushed by an articulated vehicle.
According to a source, the driver of the truck, which had just off loaded cement, lost control of his vehicle and crushed about 12 persons on the spot.
While the remains of those killed were taken to the morgue at Adeoyo State Hospital, the injured were rushed to the University College Hospital, Ibadan.
It was gathered that the truck, with number plates AGL883XQ, skidded off its lane to the other side of the road, crushed many people and commercial cars, popularly called Micra cars, and tricycles that were waiting for passengers.
According to sources, the truck off loaded bags of cement at Beere and was heading towards Molete when the accident happened.
A witness speaks
An eyewitness, Alhaja Aminat, said: “The incident happened at 7.45a.m. As I was about to enter my shop here, I heard people shouting. I first ran for my life. Later, I noticed that a driver of a truck was trying to halt the truck, but he could not.
“About seven Micra cabs, fully loaded with passengers, and six tricycles with passengers, were crushed.
“The woman and her twins were standing beside the road, waiting for Okada (commercial motorcycle) to convey them to school when the truck ran over them.”
The Police Public Relations Officer, Adekunle Ajisebutu, confirmed that four persons died in the accident and that the driver of the truck had been arrested and kept in police custody.
Commiserating with the families of the dead and injured, Oyo State Government, through the Commissioner for Information, Culture and Tourism, Mr. Toye Arulogun, said such deaths were needless and avoidable if only people will desist from street trading, keep vehicles in good condition and abide by traffic law