No fewer than 16 persons have been reportedly burnt to death, and three others severely injured, in a lone crash that occurred at Buhari Estate along the Abeokuta-Sagamu Expressway, Ogun State.
The accident, which involved a white Mazda bus registered as KJA 949 YJ, happened at about 1:00 PM on Tuesday.
Spokesperson of the Federal Road Safety Corps ( FRSC) Florence Okpe, in a statement made available to journalists ,said the gender of the victims could not be ascertained as they were burnt beyond recognition.
According to Okpe, the suspected cause of the crash was a fire outbreak in the vehicle, adding that the bus, which was conveying 21 passengers, also had a filled gas cylinder in it, leading to an explosion.
She noted that a rescue operation was carried out by operatives of RS2.2 Abeokuta Sector Command.
“A total of 21 people were involved in the crash. The genders of the victims couldn’t be ascertained at the scene because they were burnt beyond recognition.
“A total of 16 people were killed in the crash, three sustained various degrees of injuries, and two others remained unhurt.
“The suspected cause of the crash was a fire outbreak in the vehicle, which also had a filled gas cylinder in it, leading to the explosion.”
The FRSC spokesperson said the injured victims were taken to the Federal Medical Centre, Idi Aba, Abeokuta, while the corpses are still at the scene waiting for evacuation.
Meanwhile, the Sector Commander, Akinwumi Fasakin, while sympathising with the families of the deceased, warned that highly flammable items should be transported with care and by designated vehicles driven by trained drivers only.
Fasakin maintained that the crash occurred due to carelessness on the part of the driver and advised motorists and passengers to prioritize safety while using the roads.