Two container trucks overturn in Lagos, kill mother, child

•One of the containers. Photo: LASTMA

A mother and her child have been killed after two trucks, laden with 20ft containers, overturned at Mile 2, by Freeman Market, inward Apapa, Lagos State.

The Director of Public Affairs and Enlightenment Department of LASTMA, Adebayo Taofiq, disclosed this in a statement on Sunday.

Taofiq said the victims were trapped beneath the overturned trucks and their containers, sustaining fatal injuries in the incident.

He stated, “The Lagos State Traffic Management Authority over the weekend responded to a devastating road traffic incident at Mile 2, by Freeman Market, inward Apapa, in which a mother and her child lost their lives following the overturning of two heavily laden 20-foot containerised trucks.

“The harrowing incident left both victims trapped beneath the overturned trucks and their massive containerised cargoes, sustaining catastrophic injuries that rendered their remains unrecognisable.”

He noted that LASTMA rescue and recovery personnel responded to the scene to evacuate the victims, recover the trucks and manage traffic.

Taofiq stated that the affected road was temporarily cordoned off, while motorists were diverted through an adjoining service lane to prevent gridlock and secondary accidents.

According to him, the agency deployed a crane and a high-capacity tow vehicle to remove the overturned trucks and their containerised cargoes.

He added that police officers provided security during the recovery operation, while the victims’ remains were taken to the Police Mortuary in Yaba for necessary procedures.

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Reacting to the incident, the General Manager of LASTMA, Olalekan Bakare-Oki, expressed condolences to the bereaved family and called for a thorough investigation to determine the cause of the crash.

Taofiq quoted Bakare-Oki as urging relevant security agencies to establish whether mechanical defects, excessive loading, improper cargo distribution, driver negligence or other factors contributed to the incident.

The LASTMA boss also stressed the need for truck operators to comply with road safety regulations, conduct regular vehicle inspections and ensure that cargoes were properly secured.

He said, “The preservation of human life remains paramount,” urging motorists, particularly operators of heavy-duty articulated vehicles, to ensure their vehicles were roadworthy and adhere to prescribed safety standards.

Bakare-Oki added that responsible driving and proper vehicle maintenance were essential to preventing avoidable deaths on Lagos roads.

PUNCH Metro reported on Thursday that a motorboy was killed while three other people, including a truck driver, sustained injuries when a cement-laden trailer crashed along Mile 6, Ajebo Road, in the Obafemi-Owode Local Government Area of Ogun State, on Wednesday.

The spokesperson for the Ogun State Traffic Compliance and Enforcement Agency, Babatunde Akinbiyi, had stated that the crash occurred at Agbedejobi village when the trailer reportedly suffered brake failure while descending a bridge.

He explained that the driver lost control of the vehicle while attempting to avoid a car ahead, causing the trailer to ram into a ditch before veering onto a railway track and spilling its contents into a nearby bush.