Corps Commander Joseph Toby, the Sector Commander of Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), Enugu State Command, says route violation was the major cause of the fatal accident along Enugu-Port Harcourt Road on Saturday night.
Toby said this while addressing newsmen in Enugu on Sunday noting that the accident, which claimed over a dozen lives at about 8:20pm, could be attributed to lack of patience and recklessness.
He said that all the 15 occupants of a Toyota bus which had a head-on collision with a Mercedes truck on the Enugu-Port Harcourt Highway, within Ituku community in Awgu Local Government Area (LGS) were killed and burnt beyond recognition.
“All obstructions have been cleared. The Enugu State Fire Service has already extinguished the fire in the bus and the FRSC, in collaboration with security agencies, have evacuated the corpses.
“The fatal crash can also be blamed on several factors, including likely fatigue,’’ he said.
The commander urged Nigerians, especially drivers, to exercise patience and consider other road users.
Meanwhile, the Chief Fire Officer of Enugu State, Mr Okwudiri Ohaa, said that the timely intervention of the Enugu State Fire Service, through its Ituku Station, checked the escalation and spread of the fire to other vehicles.
He said, “We ensured that the fire only affected the two vehicles involved.
“By this timely intervention, other personnel of emergency responders and security agencies were able to move into the scene and play their vital roles as well.”