Bus crushes seven at Lagos bus stop after brake fails

About seven commuters on Tuesday were injured at the Berger bus stop, Isheri, Lagos State, after a Sienna Minivan rammed into a fully loaded commercial bus with number plate, KSF 948 XF, heading for Abeokuta, Ogun State.

Policemen attached to the state’s highway patrol team and officials of the Lagos State Emergency Management Agency took the victims to an unidentified hospital, while officials of the Lagos State Ambulance Service were seen treating some of the victims on the spot. Among the victims were a couple and two siblings.

It was learnt that the Sienna car failed brake and the driver lost control, ramming into people waiting to board buses to their various destinations.

A passenger in the Sienna van, Mr. Afolayan Abdulazeez, told newsmen that they observed that the vehicle was faulty five minutes after leaving Ketu.

Abdulazeez said, “After five minutes on the road, we observed that the vehicle was faulty. However, the brake failed when we got to Berger.”

An unnamed LASTMA official said the accident happened around 1pm, adding that the driver fled the scene.

He said, “The vehicle was loaded with passengers. The driver was speeding and when he pressed the brake pedal, the vehicle did not respond.

“He tried to pull up by the roadside, but the vehicle rammed into people by the roadside and crushed them. A certain woman passed out and her husband’s legs were crushed,” the official added.

Another witness, Mukaila Salimon, explained that the driver, who was determined to minimize casualties, headed for the expressway and hit the median.

“He tried his best to avoid the accident, but it was unfortunate that things turned out like this. There were seven people in the bus. I saw four people receiving treatment, but I am not sure any of the passengers in the vehicle was affected,” he added.

Confirming the accident, the Public Relations Officer of LASTMA, Mamud Hassan, said commuters must avoid faulty vehicles and should not hesitate to disembark from them once they observed any problem.

He, thereafter, appealed to commercial drivers to always check their vehicles before driving.