Two dead, two injured in separate Lagos midnight crashes
Two separate road accidents in Lagos claimed two lives and left two others injured in the early hours of Monday.
Eyewitnesses said the crashes occurred around midnight after the vehicles involved reportedly lost control, resulting in the fatalities and injuries.
Emergency responders evacuated the victims, with the injured taken to nearby hospitals and the bodies of the deceased recovered from the scenes.
Confirming the incidents, the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority, LASTMA, disclosed that the first crash happened on Otedola Bridge, inward Berger, while the second occurred on the Third Mainland Bridge, heading toward the UNILAG waterfront.
LASTMA’s General Manager, Olalekan Bakare-Oki, explained that both deaths were from the Otedola Bridge accident along the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway. Preliminary findings indicated that an unregistered vehicle carrying two occupants, including the driver, was speeding when it rammed into a moving, heavily loaded trailer at about 2:30 a.m.
He said the collision was fatal, killing both occupants instantly.
“In a disturbing development, the operator of the trailer involved fled the scene with the articulated vehicle,” Bakare-Oki said.
He noted that LASTMA’s Night-Gang Teams, deployed for midnight surveillance and traffic management, arrived promptly at the scene. The bodies were cleared from the main carriageway to prevent further accidents, and the wrecked vehicle was removed from the expressway.
Police officers from the Isheri Division provided security backup, while officials of the State Environmental Health Monitoring Unit, SHEMU, handled the formal evacuation of the remains.
In a second incident around 5:00 a.m. on the Third Mainland Bridge near the UNILAG waterfront, a collision involving an empty tanker and a pure-water distribution van (plate number SMK 67 XH) resulted in severe injuries to two people.
The Lagos State Ambulance Service, LASAMBUS, administered first aid before the victims were transported to a nearby medical facility.
Bakare-Oki added that despite the tragic incidents, LASTMA officers maintained steady traffic management on both corridors to protect motorists and avert further risks.
He also extended condolences to the families of the deceased, warning that excessive speeding and disregard for traffic regulations continue to claim innocent lives.
He reaffirmed LASTMA’s commitment to enforcing speed limits, stressing that compliance remains crucial to preventing needless tragedies.
