By Ola ‘Kiya, Reporting
NO fewer than six persons have been confirmed dead and many injured at the scene of a collision between a moving train and a state bus conveying civil servants to work in Lagos.
The scene
The unfortunate crash occurred at the PWD Bus Stop in the Ikeja area of the state on Thursday morning.
Besides the six persons confirmed dead by emergency responders, over 82 persons who were injured were rushed to the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital (LASUTH) in Ikeja
Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, who visited the hospital, while giving a first hand information, said two persons died at the scene of the accident and four at the hospital.
He said 85 passengers were involved in all, 42 with moderate injuries, 29 with serious injuries while eight have mild injuries.
Scene
The sights from the scene are gory as passersby watched in horror even as the dead and the injured were being evacuated from the bus which was hit right on the rail tracks.
The Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA) spokesman, Adebayo Taofiq, said though the bus involved in the crash was the same as the regular BRT buses in the state, the bus was a staff bus of the Lagos State Government.
Also, a spokesman for the Lagos State Emergency Management Agency (LASEMA), Nosa Okunbor, said over 82 others injured were evacuated to LASUTH.
“The State Government staff bus was trying to cross the PWD/Sogunle rail crossing while the train coming into Lagos from Abeokuta trapped the bus on its rail,” he added.
The scene
During his visit to LASUTH, Governor Sanwo-Olu, who confirmed that the victims are mostly Civil Servants of the state, described the incident as unfortunate.
Meanwhile, the Minister of Aviation, Hadi Sirika, has, since, directed the Nigerian Safety Investigation Bureau (NSIB) experts to commence immediate investigation into the accident.
In a statement by his Special Assistant on Public Affairs, James Odaudu, the minister described the accident as unfortunate, and assured the public of the capacity of the Nigeria Safety Investigation Bureau (NSIB) to unravel the immediate and remote causes of the accident and proffer ways of preventing such in the future.
He solicited the cooperation of members of the public as investigation by the NSIB team commences.
He commiserated with the government and people of Lagos, especially those who have lost their loved ones, on the sad event, and prayed for the quick recovery of those injured in the accident
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