Six Dead, 23 Injured in Trailer Crash on Lagos-Ibadan Expressway

No one really sets out on a road trip expecting it to end in tragedy. But late Monday morning, along the busy Lagos-Ibadan Expressway near Four Square Camp, that is exactly what happened.

The Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) confirmed that six people lost their lives while twenty-three others sustained injuries in a lone crash involving a DAF CF 380 trailer with registration number SNA 287 XA.

According to Ogun State FRSC spokesperson, Odunsin Afolabi, the accident occurred at about 11:27 a.m. Rescue teams from the Ogunmakin Unit Command reportedly arrived within two minutes of receiving the alert. Twenty-nine people were involved in the crash. Six passengers died on the spot, while the injured victims suffered varying degrees of trauma.

Preliminary findings suggest the driver lost control of the vehicle due to fatigue and excessive speed. It is the sort of combination road safety officials warn about constantly. And still, these things keep happening.

Afolabi also cautioned drivers against transporting passengers alongside livestock or heavy cargo, noting that such practices often complicate rescue efforts and increase the likelihood of fatalities when accidents occur.

The injured victims, along with the bodies of the deceased, were taken to Oreoluwa Hospital at GOFAMINT Camp, Ogunmakin, and Victory Hospital in Ogere.

Once again, the FRSC urged motorists, particularly operators of commercial and articulated vehicles, to maintain their vehicles properly, avoid speeding, and obey traffic regulations. The reminder feels familiar. Maybe because it is repeated after almost every major highway crash.

Yet the hope, always, is that someone listens before the next journey begins.