Tears as Woman and Her Twin Children are Crushed to Death in Oyo

A woman and her twin children have been met with a
horrific tragedy in an accident that has left behind
irreparable damages.

Some of the vehicles and tricycles crushed by the truck
(inset) in Ibadan. Photos: Dare Fasube.
It was a very pitiable sight and tears flowed freely on
Tuesday as sympathisers wept uncontrollably, when a
woman was killed alongside her kids in an accident.
Sympathisers wept when they saw the mangled bodies
of the mother and her twin children after they were
crushed by a truck on a bright morning at the popular
Oja Oba market in Ibadan South East local council
area of Oyo State.
According to Vanguard, the truck marked AGL883XQ
lost control after it had brake failure. When the dust
finally settled, it left in its wake blood, broken bones
and attendant sorrow.
Though, the police confirmed the death of four people,
eye witnesses said those who were crushed by the
truck could not be less than 12.
Among those, who met sudden death was an engineer
with the Ibadan Properties, Mr. Monsur Ajedayo, who
was crushed while waiting for a taxi by the roadside.
Also, some traders, who refused to heed the warning of
Governor Abiola Ajimobi to stop roadside trading were
among the victims.
A relative of Ajedayo, explained that his late cousin
had alighted from the car of one of his bosses and
was waiting for a taxi when he met his untimely
death.
“The boss was going somewhere so he dropped him at
Mapo. He walked down to Oja Oba to take a taxi when
he was crushed by the truck,” he said.
Apart from losing many people in the accident, the
truck, from which bags of cement were off loaded at
Beere area, also ran into waiting tricycles and
commercial cars. The Federal Road Safety
Commission (FRSC) officials rushed to the scene to
rescue survivors.
Remains of the dead were taken to the mortuary at
Adeoyo Hospital, while the injured were taken to the
University College Hospital, Ibadan.
An eye witness, Alhaja Aminat said: “The incident
happened at 7.45am on Tuesday. As I was about to
enter my shop here, I heard people shouting. I first of
all ran for my life. Later, I noticed that a driver of a
truck was trying to put the truck to rest but he could
not do that without running into some vehicles parked
along the road. About seven Micra cabs fully loaded
with passengers and six tricycles with passengers were
crushed along its way as the driver was swerving along
the road to find a way to stop.
“The woman, with her twin children, were standing
beside the road waiting for Okada (commercial
motorcycles) to convey them to school when the truck
ran over them,” the trader narrated.
Describing the incident as unfortunate, Alhaji Adeyemi
Ajimati said: “The truck driver, who has killed the
innocent souls has escaped. But for the intervention of
the security operatives, some irate sympathisers could
have caused more havoc if they had set the lorry on
fire. But we thank God that it happened this early
period of the day when many traders had not set their
wares beside the road. Many more could have been
crushed to death.”
One of those, who escaped being killed by the truck,
Fola Omidiran, said: “The truck skidded off the road
suddenly as it descended the slope, killing a woman
and her two children immediately. It also injured many
others. From what we heard, the articulated truck had a
brake failure. Five tricycles were also crushed in the
accident; one of them even caught fire while occupants
sustained injuries.”
The South West caretaker chairman, Alhaji Rauf
Folarin, who visited the scene of the accident thanked
God that the road had not been as busy as it used to
be when the accident occurred, noting that the
casualties recorded would have been more.
The Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), Adekunle
Ajisebutu (SP) said: “The accident is under
investigation. The offending driver has been arrested
and is in police custody. Four victims died as a result
of the accident. Their bodies have been deposited at
the Adeoyo State Hospital morgue. Three victims were
injured and have been taken to the same hospital and
UCH for medical treatment.”