A driver and his motorboy were seriously injured after a 40ft truck they were riding in fell off the Apapa Bridge.
The cause of the accident is not yet known but sources said it may not be unconnected with overspeeding causing the vehicle to skid off the bridge.
Confirming the incident to newsmen, the Director of Public Affairs Enlightenment Department of LASTMA, Taofiq Adebayo, said:
“Operatives of the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA) this morning rescued a seriously injured driver and a motor boy from an empty articulated 40ft flat bed truck that fell off from the high bridge inward Apapa.
The incident happened while the over speeding truck was climbing the high bridge directly opposite ‘Sifax’ Company by Ijora ‘Olopa’ inward Apapa. The injured driver was rescued by Lastma personnel in a pool of blood gushing out from his head while the motor boy sustained a serious waist fracture by his spinal cord.”A preliminary investigation revealed that the driver of the articulated 40ft empty flatbed truck lost total control due to brake failure while struggling a ‘Right of Way’ (R.O.W) with another fully loaded truck trying to climb the High Bridge inward Apapa.
Immediately after the unfortunate incident happened other articulated truck drivers around ‘Sifax’ Company supported Lastma personnel and rescued both the driver and motor boy who were trapped under the truck.”LASTMA Goriola Jimoh ‘Zebra’ (Zone 22) Apapa who led the rescue operations confirmed that the rescued injured driver and his motor boy were rushed to the General Hospital at Apapa for immediate medical treatment.
The crashed articulated truck was evacuated by Officials of the Lasema Response Unit (LRU) while Lastma personnel handed over the case to Policemen from Ijora – Badia Police Station for further investigation.
The General Manager of LASTMA Mr. Bakare Oki however, appealed to owners of articulated trucks to always carry out periodic safety training and enlightenment campaigns for their drivers on the need to obey road signs speed limit while driving on highways within and outside the State.”
