A tragic accident in Lagos on Tuesday claimed the lives of a police officer and one other passenger after a 40-foot container truck overturned on a tricycle along Ijora Causeway, inward Ijora Seven-Up.
The General Manager of the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA), Olalekan Bakare-Oki, confirmed the incident in a statement, noting that the truck lost control while attempting a dangerous manoeuvre beneath the Ijora Bridge.
“Preliminary findings indicate that the articulated vehicle, while attempting a precarious manoeuvre beneath the Ijora Bridge, lost control and consequently capsized, fatally crushing a tricycle with registration number KJA 364 QN,” Bakare-Oki said.
He disclosed that two passengers, including a serving police officer, were killed instantly. The officer’s remains were taken to a morgue in Yaba by security operatives, while relatives of the second victim, a female passenger, retrieved her body from the scene.
Two other victims, including the tricycle operator, were rescued alive but sustained severe leg fractures. They were rushed by the Lagos State Ambulance Service (LASAMBUS) to Jimi Ogunnusi Hospital, Gasikiya, Ijora, for urgent treatment.
To prevent the situation from escalating, combined police detachments from Badia, Trinity, and Kirikiri divisions cordoned off the area after irate onlookers attempted to set the truck ablaze. The swift intervention ensured the safety of emergency responders throughout the rescue operations.
