The Nation Newspaper

Tag: accidents

  • Ogu reveals accident scare

    Ogu reveals accident scare

    Super Eagles midfielder, John Ogu has revealed that he was involved in an accident on his way to the Nigeria camp ahead of today’s 2014 FIFA World Cup qualifier against Malawi.

    Ogu, who was among the last batch of Eagles to land in Calabar for the crucial clash, said that the unfortunate incident forced him to miss his flight to Nigeria, hence his late arrival.

    “I was actually given permission by the coach (Stephen Keshi) to arrive on Tuesday because my club (Academica do Coimbra) was involved in a league match on Monday. However, on my way to the airport, the car I was travelling in was involved in an accident so this made me to miss my flight,” Ogu told supersport.com on Friday.

    The midfielder, who trained for the first time with the rest of the squad on Thursday, further revealed that he has now firmly put the sad incident behind him and will instead focus on helping Nigeria get a win against Malawi today.

    “To be honest it wasn’t easy. I was supposed to connect a flight from Madrid in Spain but I missed that flight. The flight was a direct one from Madrid to Lagos. When that failed, the only option I had was to connect another flight from Portugal to Istanbul. I then connected another flight to Lagos from Istanbul after spending the entire day at the airport. However, all that is in the past now, I am now ready to face Malawi today,” he revealed.

    Ogu has been capped seven times by Nigeria and has one goal to his name at international level.

  • One killed, two injured in Lagos accidents

    A Man was killed yesterday at Haruna in Ikorodu, a Lagos suburb, by a hit-and-run driver.

    The incident occurred around 9am when policemen attached to Owutu Police Division, who were on patrol, attempted to impound a commercial bus and arrest its driver.

    It was gathered that the policemen chased the driver, who allegedly committed a traffic offence, from Agric bus stop towards Ikorodu town.

    Sources said the driver, who was driving recklessly, knocked down a man who was waiting for a bus by the roadside.

    The victim, simply identified as Baba Peace, died on the spot.

    His wife, who earlier escorted him to the junction, kept on crying out for help. She was later taken to her house by sympathisers.

    When the accident occurred, the policemen immediately turned back to avoid a mob action.

    The police patrol vehicle veered off the road and raced into Wahab Avenue, before heading for Marwa Estate.

    Youths and commercial motorcyclists went after them and the policemen started shooting into the air to scare them away.

    They went into a compound in the estate, where they packed their vehicle.

    They told the owner of the house that some robbers were after them and the man phoned the Divisional Police Officer in charge of Owutu Police Station, who immediately ordered reinforcement.

    However, before the reinforcement arrived, one of the policemen changed into mufti and went out of the gate, but he was identified by someone in the angry mob that was waiting outside the gate.

    He was held there until reinforcement arrived and set rescued him.

    The body of the deceased was later taken away by policemen from Owutu Police Division and men of the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA).

    Also yesterday, a bus driver fleeing from LASTMA officials, who wanted to arrest him for driving on the BRT lane, knocked down two pedestrians at Ketu bus stop, Lagos.

    The bus driver escaped.

    The incident occurred around 2pm.

    The injured, a male and a female, were taken to a nearby hospital.

    Attempts to speak with deputy police spokesman Damasus Ozoanifailed, as several calls to his cell phone were not answered.

  • Okada ban: Car sales, accidents soar in Delta

    The number of cars sold in Warri, Effurun, Asaba and other towns in Delta State has surged in the wake of the ban on the use of motorcycles (okada) for public transport, an investigation has shown.

    The government outlawed the use of okada in Effurun, Warri and Asaba, the state capital, on November 1, last year.

    The Nation found that the ban led to a boom in the sale of Belgium (second hand) cars in not only the cities, but across other towns, such as Sapele, Ughelli and Agbor, among others.

    Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan has warned that more cities would join the list later this year.

    Mr. Ezekiel, a car dealer on Jakpa Road, Effurun, said: “Yes, it is true our business has witnessed a surge since the ban on okada.

    “I believe it is because of the ban because the kinds of cars being purchased are those small and affordable cars that people can use to get from one point to the other.”

    Another dealer, Pullye Ighodaro, said former okada riders have also shifted to the purchase of smaller cars for use as taxi.

    “Those who prepared for the ban had enough money to buy cars and have now converted to taxi drivers.”

    It was gathered that the presence of more vehicles on the roads has led to traffic jams in the cities, particularly the twin cities of Warri and Effurun.

    On the downside, with the increased number of cars and inexperienced drivers have come increased accidents in the cities, particularly during the Yuletide.

    Unofficial figures showed that 15 accidents occured between the last hours of 2012 and first three days of the New Year in Warri and Effurun.

  • Sokoto, Zamfara lose 215 lives in accidents

    No fewer than 215 persons lost their lives in road crashes in Sokoto and Zamfara states between January and November of the outgoing year, according to  Alhaji Danjuma Aliyu, Head of Department, Vehicles Administration, Federal Roads Safety Commission (FRSC).

    Aliyu gave the details in Sokoto while addressing reporters to mark the commencement of a special end of year campaign tagged ”Operation zero tolerance to road traffic crashes.”

    He said: “Until Nigerians become more disciplined drivers and commuters and respect the rights of others while on the wheels, we will continue to have statistical increase in accidents frequency.”

    Aliyu said that ”82 fatal crashes were recorded in the zone during the period under review, 77 of which were critical.”

    Aliyu said that the nationwide operation was embarked upon by the commission to make sure that motorists observe traffic rules and regulations.

    “Nigerians must take safety as  personal and collective responsibilities,” he said. “It is only the living that celebrate and they are those who are careful. Accident is no respecter of class or social status.”

    Aliyu further promised that the nearly 30,000 regular and special marshals across the nation are totally committed to ensuring safety on Nigerian roads.

    “We badly need the usual  support and cooperation of all the stakeholders in the country in making our roads safer,” he said.

    He stressed the need for additional operational support with patrol vehicles, ambulances as well as tow trucks , among other logistics.

  • ‘35% of aviation accidents caused by wind shear’

    Thirty-five per cent of aviation accidents and deaths worldwide are caused by wind shear, the Director-General of the Nigeria Meteorological Agency (NIMET), Dr. Anthony Anuforom, has said.

    He said besides providing accurate weather information, wind shear alert system is vital to ensure safety in the aviation sector.

    According to a statement made available to The Nation yesterday in Abuja by NIMET’s Head of Corporate Communications, Eva Azinge, the alert system is currently installed in Yola and Benin airports besides those already fixed in Abuja, Lagos, Kaduna and Port Harcourt International airports.

    Anuforom said: “Wind shear and other atmospheric phenomena contribute up to 30 per cent if not 35 per cent to aviation accidents and deaths worldwide. This is a global statistics, and this is why the Nigerian government has been equipping NIMET to sharpen its capacity to observe the weather.”

    He said wind shear can be described as the difference in wind speed and direction over a relatively short distance in the atmosphere, adding that it is commonly observed near micro-bursts and down-bursts caused by thunderstorm. He said it has a significant effect during take-off and landing due to its effects on the control of the aircraft.

    Said Anuforom: “Now you talk about wind shear in particular and I think it is good news for me to let you know that so far, we have wind shear alert systems at the four international airports in Abuja, Lagos, Kaduna and Port Harcourt. As we are talking, we are installing it in Yola and Benin. We concluded the factory acceptance test for Yola a few days ago. Work is ongoing to have it in Owerri airport, Enugu airport and Sokoto airport.”

    He said safety in the airspace is determined by two factors. First is what he described as Communication, Navigation and Surveillance (CNS) managed by the Nigeria Airspace Management Agency (NAMA), while the other dimension is the weather forecast run by NIMET.

    The Director-General said the Federal Government has made a budget proposal which is under review in the National Assembly to enable the agency build more wind shear alert systems in other airports in the country.

     

     

     

  • 25 dead in Zamfara road accidents

    Twenty-five people have died in two accidents on the Gusau-Sokoto road in Zamfara State.

    An official of the Zamfara State Government said the accidents took place an hour apart.

    Government spokesman Nuhu Anka said yesterday that the first accident occurred on Monday when a bus tyre burst on the Gusau-Sokoto road.

    The driver reportedly lost control of the vehicle, leading to the death of six passengers, who were going to attend a wedding.

    Anka said 19 others died in the second accident involving a bus and a car on the same road.

    Ten people were injured.

    The government spokesman noted that reckless driving caused the accidents.

    He said the accidents were not caused by bad road, because the 230-kilometre road was not damaged where they occurred, although the road has bad patches.

     

  • Four feared dead in Lagos multiple accidents

    Four feared dead in Lagos multiple accidents

    Four people were feared dead last night in multiple accidents on Otedola Bridge on the Lagos-Ibadan expressway.

    The accidents caused a gridlock on the ever-busy highway.

    Mr Bisi Kazeem, Deputy Education Officer of the Federal Road Safety Commission, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) that the vehicles involved in the accident include an articulated lorry, a fuel tanker, a truck and at least two saloon cars. “We do not have access to other affected vehicles yet.

    “Efforts are still on to shift the truck and the tanker so as to remove the vehicles trapped under them,” Kazeem said.

    He said the Lagos-Ibadan half of the expressway was partially blocked by the tanker and the truck.

    “All relevant agencies are on ground trying to remove affected vehicles and restore normalcy.

    “The Lagos State Emergency Management Agency (LASEMA) is setting up floodlights while men of the fire service are blanketing the area,” Kazeem said.

    “We are advising motorists to exercise patience and obey traffic officials at the scene. They should follow the diversion and avoid hopping lanes in order not to compound the congestion,” he said.

     

  • Govt: Okada robberies, accidents have reduced

    Robberies and accidents on commercial motorcycles have reduced following the coming of the Road Traffic Law, the Lagos State Security Council (LSSC) has said.

    Briefing reporters after its meeting on Wednesday, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Operations) Mr Tunde Sobulo said the law’s enforcement has curtailed crime.

    Sobulo, who spoke at Lagos House, Marina, said there had been a drop in people taking an Okada for N3000 from Iyana -Ipaja to go and rob in Lekki or Victoria Island.

    He thanked the public for its understanding, adding that the security agencies are enjoying the people’s cooperation on the law’s enforcement.

    Sobulo said there was no going back on the restriction order because “it is meant to promote safety and security on the roads.

    “There are only a few ones left and they are the ones that do not belong to any union. They are operating on their own. Besides robbery, Okada accident is reducing by the day.

    “The accidents involving Okada is going to zero, using Okadas to rob in hold ups, or during closing hours have been reduced. Following people from banks to their houses to snatch their money has also disappeared.”

    He said by the end of the year, the crime rate would have reduced significantly as there is no society without crime, adding that the security agencies will keep on doing what they should do to protect law-abiding citizens.

    With Sobulo during the briefing were Commanding Officer, NNS Beecroft, Apapa, Navy Commodore Martins Njoku; Commander, 9th Brigade, Ikeja Cantonment, Brig-Gen. Pat Akem; Commander, 435 Base Services Group, Nigeria Airforce, Air Commodore Tony Omenyi and Senior Special Assistant to the Governor on Security Major Tunde Panox.

  • Two killed in Lagos accidents

    Two people on Monday were killed in road accidents in different parts of Lagos.

    It was gathered that while one of the victims died on the spot, the other died at a hospital.

    According to the police, at about 6:20am on Monday, an unidentified driver knocked down and killed a man, who was later identified Wasiu Aliu, on Funsho Williams Avenue, Surulere and escaped.

    It was learnt that the victim died on the spot and the body was later removed by traffic policemen, who deposited it at the Isolo General Hospital Mortuary for autopsy.

    Also, on the same day at about 10:15am, a Toyota Hiace Bus driven by Denis Tilekaa ran over Tajudeen Ogunbiyi .Ogunbiyi was rushed to General Hospital Gbagada, where he later died. The body has been deposited at the hospital mortuary for autopsy.

    Both cases are being investigated at Bariga and Ojodu Divisions.

    Twelve robbery suspects have been arrested in different parts of the metropolis by police operatives. Operatives also recovered five locally made double barrel guns and over 15 live cartridges from the hoodlums.

    Police spokesperson Ngozi Braide confirmed the accidents and the arrest.

    She said: “On October 21 at about 0355hrs, policemen attached to Bode Thomas Division, acted on a tip-off and arrested one suspected robber with bullet wound.

    “Also on October 17 at about 2100hrs, policemen attached to Ilasa Division arrested one Ikechukwu Eze, Obeha Celestine and Godwin Jacob with two stolen Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN) transformers loaded in a fiat lorry.