It was a black Tuesday in Enugu as several people including a family of four have reportedly died in an accident at a military checkpoint in Enugu State.
The accident happened at Ugwu Onyeama along Enugu-Onitsha Expressway around 9 am on Tuesday.
According to some eyewitnesses, five persons died on the spot, while many sustained different degrees of injury in the accident that involved multiple vehicles.
The affected family, yet to be identified, includes a man, his wife, and two children. Only one of the children was said to have survived.
An eyewitness told our correspondent that the unfortunate incident occurred when a tanker carrying inflammable products had a head-on collision with a trailer carrying cement at a military checkpoint because of the blockade.
“The crash now affected other vehicles in a queue at the checkpoint,” the eyewitness said, lamenting that the checkpoint located on the hill axis of the road has caused several accidents in the past.
Among the vehicles affected are, “A fully loaded GUO bus travelling to Lagos from Ebonyi State, a private car with parents and their two young children, and an unmarked bus, were also involved in the crash.”
Deputy Governor of Enugu State, Barr. Ifeanyi Ossai who was at the scene of the incident for an on-the-spot assessment, and the hospitals where the injured victims were taken to lamented the losses.
Ossai thanked the hospitals for their promptness in treating the victims as well as the first respondents for their efforts in reducing the number of casualties.
“We visited the private clinic at 9th mile where a substantial number of our citizens are hospitalized and we are also here at the orthopaedic hospital where some of the victims are receiving treatment.
“We’re also grateful to the Doctors for their prompt interventions because I’m sure but for their interventions, we would have had more losses. We’re also grateful to the first responders; the military personnel, Road Safety Corps, fire service, DSS and police, and all the institutions that came and effected immediate response and ensure we didn’t lose more persons than we lost.”
The Deputy Governor also assured that the government will assist the injured persons in their treatment.
He said the incident has also exposed the need to strengthen the institutions responsible for maintaining accident-free roads as some accidents are avoidable, while harping on the need for regular vehicle maintenance and training programs for the drivers.