The Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) on Thursday confirmed that 21 persons died in an automobile crash on the old Enugu–Okigwe road, Southeast region of the country.
The accident involved a low-bed articulated vehicle and a fully-loaded 608 Mercedes Benz bus conveying school children and their teachers.
The FRSC Sector Commander in Enugu State, Mr Ogbonnaya Kalu, who confirmed the accident and the number of deaths, said that it happened precisely at the Nkwo Junction of the road at about 4:30 p.m. on Wednesday when the school children were returning home
Kalu said that the FRSC Unit in Awgu, Enugu State were at the scene of the accident and hospitals where the victims were receiving medical attention.
According to him, the fully-loaded school bus had 64 occupants, which included 61 students/pupils, two teachers and the driver.
“The low-bed trailer, which eyewitnesses alleged suffered a break system failure, rammed into the School bus first and into a welder’s shop, where the welder and his apprentice were working,’’ he said.
An eyewitness, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said that the low-bed vehicle lost control and rammed into a big school bus conveying some secondary and primary school children home.
He said the sad accident threw a lot of families within the Agwu axis of the state into mourning as a family allegedly lost three of its kids.
“”The driver of the heavy duty vehicle ran away from the scene of the accident after forcing the vehicle to a halt inside the bush,’’ the eye witness said.