A traffic accident that happened on Friday in Odeomu, Osun State, resulted in the deaths of about 16 individuals.
The two involved automobiles collided, according to Odeomu resident Fatai Lasisi, who was nearby the accident scene.
According to Lasisi, an Osogbo-bound commercial Mazda bus and a private car travelling from Ikorodu, Lagos State, to Osogbo collided.
He claimed that the commercial bus, which had a gas cylinder in its trunk, swerved into a bush where it caught fire after losing control after being struck by the Lexus car.
Also while giving account of the accident, Mr. Kareem Isau, ex chairman National Union of Road Transport Workers, Odeomu Branch, said he arrived the scene after the affected bus was already on fire.
He said 16 corpses including 5 children were removed from the burnt vehicle, while 3 passengers and the driver of the affected bus, escaped death.
Isau said, “I arrived the scene of the accident around 7pm on Friday. People I met there told me a Lexus vehicle coming Ibadan end hit a commercial Mazda bus coming from Osogbo going to Ibadan. The bus lost control and entered the bush. Immediately that happened, the bus caught fire because a gas cylinder was kept in the trunk of the vehicle.
“I saw that gas cylinder when it was brought it. The vehicle was already burning when I arrived the scene around 7pm. I was told the accident occured earlier. The Mazda bus left Aregbesola area in Osogbo going to Ibadan.
“Four people escaped: the driver of the vehicle, a security agent, a corps member and a lady. One of the four that survived, a lady, told us that the bus with 18-passenger capacity left Aregbesola Area on Friday for Ibadan.
“She also said some of the passengers were nursing mothers and carried their babies, while some passengers sat on each others lap. When we were removing the corpses from the vehicle, five children were packed together. In all we removed 16 corpses from the vehicle.”
When contacted on Saturday for reaction, Agnes Ogungbemi, the Osun Sector Public Education Officer of the Federal Road Safety Corps, said official casualty figure was not available yet.
She said, “No detail for now because we have not been able to ascertain the dead, but the injured have been taken to the hospital.
One of the vehicles carried gas ,it exploded and cause the fire outbreak.”
