18 die in road accident

No fewer than 18 persons have been confirmed dead in an accident involving a Ford Explorer jeep and a Mazda bus at Alapako area on Lagos-Ibadan Expressway on Sunday.
Babatunde Akinbiyi, the Public Relations Officer, Ogun Traffic Compliance and Enforcement Agency, confirmed the accident.
Akinbiyi stated that the accident happened around 6:30pm at the diversion end in Alapako on the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway.
He explained that the accident was caused by wrongful overtaking on the part of the Mazda bus, which led to a head on collision with the Jeep.
He said: “The accident involved 19 people, 18 people died, while one person was seriously injured.
“The Commercial Bus with registration number GGE 873 XU was trying to overtake a vehicle in front before colliding with the Ford Explorer Jeep with registration number KJA 278 DS coming from the opposite direction.
“All the 18 passengers in the bus died while the driver in the Jeep, the only occupant, sustained injury.”
Akinbiyi said seven of the dead passengers were evacuated by officers of TRACE and their remains deposited at FOS Mortuary, Ipara-Remo, while the remains of another three, who were initially injured, but died later, were deposited at Isara General Hospital.
The TRACE spokesman said the bodies of the remaining eight passengers were evacuated by the officials of the Federal Road Safety Corps and could not confirm where they were taken to.
He said the vehicles had been taken to Alapako Police Station.