Hungry Rivers residents scramble for spaghetti at accident scene

There was pandemonium at UTC Junction, Port Harcourt, Rivers State on Thursday following an accident involving a mini bus and a trailer loaded with cartons of spaghetti.

Scores of hungry residents, who rushed to the scene of the accident, were seen scrambling for the spaghetti, which scattered on the road because of the impact of the crash.

The residents rushed to the scene with different sizes of bags and began to pack the pieces of noodles that littered the ground as they complained of hunger.

It was gathered that the truck was on its way to deliver the spaghetti when it was involved in the accident that wrecked the blue van.

But despite the checkpoint of the police located in the area, the residents jostled and pushed one another insisting that it was manner from heaven.

All the persons involved in the struggle for the pasta ignored all the COVID-19 preventive measures of social distancing and wearing of face masks.

Some of them removed their shirts and used them to pack the spaghetti while others collected handfuls before leaving the scene.

A middle age man, who refused to mention his name, said the incident was divine describing the spaghetti as food palliatives.

But officials of the company, that manufactures the IRS pasta, later arrived the scene escorted by security operatives to salvage some of the products.

He said: “God has remembered us to give us this food palliative. We have been hungry since this Coronavirus started. The lockdowns worsened our situation. But this morning following the accident involving a truck and a van, we saw spaghetti all over the road.

“Half of the content of the truck was emptied on the road. The packs of the noodles burst and we see prices of the noodles on the ground. In fact, we had heaps of spaghetti and all we did was to pack them. It will go a long way to help us deal with the Coronavirus hunger”.

A child, who was also involved in the scrambling, said he discovered the scene while running errands for his parents.

The child, who identified himself simply as Emeka, said his parents would be happy with some of the spaghetti he gathered at the scene.

Security operatives, later dispersed the crowd and cordoned the area.

Four die in Niger road crashes

The Niger state Command of the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) has disclosed that four people died in five road traffic crashes during the Sallah holidays.

In an interim report for Sallah holiday operations signed by the Corps Sector Commander, Joel Dagwa, 35 people were involved out of which 14 were injured.

The report revealed that 15 vehicles were booked for contravening various traffic offences while one vehicle was booked for overloading.

Three killed in Lagos-Ibadan road crashes

The Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) in Ogun said that three persons died while 14 others sustained injuries in two separate crashes along Lagos-Ibadan Expressway on Monday.

Mr Clement Oladele, FRSC state Sector Commander, gave the details in a statement made available to News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Ota.

Oladele explained that the first crash that involved two vehicles, a DAF Truck marked JHN 410 XA and a Mazda Bus marked KRD 290 XY, occurred at about 6.35a.m. before Isara Bridge, near Ogere.

He said that three out of the 20 people involved died while 10 others sustained various degrees of injury in the accident.

“The corpses of the victims have been deposited at FOS Isara hospital morgue, Ogun, while five of the injured have also been taken to Victory Hospital.

“Three other survivors were taken to Idera Hospital, while two other victims were taken to Sagamu General Hospital, Ogun for treatment,” he said.

Tipper kills two, injures 12 in Anambra auto crash

Two persons lost their lives while twelve sustained varying degrees of injury in an auto crash on the Onitsha/Owerri Expressway, Anambra State.

The crash which occured at about 7am involved a tipper without registration number and a commercial bus with registration number NEN59XQ.

The Nation gathered that the accident was caused by excessive speeding, resulting in loss of control by the driver whose leg was cut off in the crash.

An eyewitness said the tipper driver was negotiating into his house when the bus rammed into it.

“It was caused by excessive speed by the driver who lost control and rammed in the lorry.

“Again, the crash occurred during a downpour which must have blurred visibility,” the source stated

The Sector Public Education Officer of the Federal Road Safety Corps, Anambra State, Pascal Anigbo, who confirmed the incident, said 15 persons , 10 adult males and five adult females, were involved in the crash.

He said,” 12 people sustained serious injuries, out of which Seven were rushed to Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital while the other five victims were rushed to God’s Favour Hospital Okohia, both in Ihiala town.

“Two victims, the driver whose leg was amputated in the crash and another victim had been confirmed dead by doctors at the hospital.

“The rescue operation was jointly carried out by operatives of the NPF, DSS, FRSC and NSCDC. The obstruction caused was cleared to ease movement of other vehicles.”

Three killed in Lagos, Ogun crashes

THREE persons have been confirmed dead and 12 others injured in separate accidents in Lagos and Ogun states.

Two men lost their lives and six people sustained injuries on Wednesday evening around Old Toll Gate, Ota, Ogun State in a multiple crash involving a truck, two commercial buses and two motorcycles.

Similarly, a woman was killed yesterday morning and six passengers including a nine-year-old injured after a fuel-laden tanker collided with an inter-state bus they were inside on Otedola Bridge, Lagos.

It was gathered that the bus was inwards Berger when the tanker failed brake and rammed into it.

The Nation reports that the bus which was not on essential duty could commute passengers into Lagos despite the presidential directive banning interstate travels was further evidence that security agents manning border checkpoints were not doing their jobs

Lagos State government said it was  set to stop incessant truck accidents that have claimed lives.

Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu said “enough is enough”, as the state government convened a stakeholders’ engagement with key representatives of the downstream energy sector to deepen safety awareness of operators, given the spate of fire incidents involving petroleum tankers in recent time.

Speaking at a virtual meeting, the Commissioner for Energy & Mineral Resources, Mr. Olalere Odusote, said: “Governor Sanwo-Olu is keen to see the downstream sector continue to flourish in the state, but operators must stay within the framework of safety provided by the regulators and the laws of the state.”

Odusote said the workshop was put together to address the recurrence of such hazardous incidents and seek effective and lasting solutions that align the interests of stakeholders.

The Commissioner for Transportation, Dr. Frederic Oladeinde, said that relevant infrastructure to facilitate vehicle testing would be made available at mutually agreed designated points to support the downstream sector.

Updated: One killed, seven injured in Otedola Bridge auto crash

A tanker has collided with a fully loaded commercial bus on Otedola Bridge in Lagos leaving one person dead and seven injured on Thursday morning.

The accident involved a Mazda bus with 10 passengers and a tanker on Otedola Bridge at the lane inwards Berger, causing heavy traffic that stretches beyond the state Secretariat in Alausa.

All relevant emergency agencies are on the ground to prevent a fire outbreak.

LASTMA@followlastma

 · 2h

Replying to @followlastma

[9.34am] #Update #OtedolaRoadCrash
Road cordoned off to allow for evacuation of casualties and vehicles. CMD Rd available for movement to bypass the accident scene.
Road will be opened soon.@TrafficChiefNG @Gidi_Traffic @trafficbutter @lagostraffic961 @lagostelevision

LASTMA@followlastma

#Update #OtedolaRoadCrash
Preliminary reports confirm that a Golf car was also involved in the crash. No casualties from the car.
One passenger from the bus confirmed dead with seven others injured.@TrafficChiefNG @Gidi_Traffic @trafficbutter @lagostraffic961 @lagostelevision