FRSC boss, Boboye-Oyeyemi
What would have been a major disaster, was Monday, averted in Abia State when a petrol tanker laden with 40,000 litres of petrol lost control and feel on an on-coming Mercedes Benz car.
The truck marked XKN 222 SA with the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) inscription on it was coming from the Aba end of the busy Owerri- Aba highway when the accident occurred at Owerinta, in front of the Nigeria Navy School of Finance and Logistics.
But for the timely intervention of the Commandant of the School, Capt Abdulahi Aminu, and his men, the tanker would have gone up in flames.
The solders quickly mobilised and sprayed water on the fallen tanker to prevent possible inferno after completely blocking both ends of the highway to avoid other vehicles from ramming into the fallen truck.
However, before help could reach the driver of the car who was trapped under the tanker, he had already died.
Confirming the incident to newsmen, the Capt. Aminu said he personally led the rescue mission but regretted that the driver of the Mercedes car could not make it before the tanker was lifted off his car.
He however, said the damage would have been more if the tanker had caught fire, a development he attributed to the timely intervention of his men and the professional way the rescue effort was handled.
He described the ugly incident as very unfortunate, adding that the body of the victim had been deposited at the mortuary.
The Naval boss said his men had also evacuated people from around the scene of the accident to save their lives and minimise possible damage.
His words: “ It was a huge tragedy and immediately I heard about the incident, I told my people to do everything possible to ensure the safety of lives and property of the people living around the area including our base.
“I came down personally and was directing the affairs until the tow truck we engaged came to move the fallen truck out of the highway, as the entire road was completely blocked.
“The man whose car the truck fell on was trapped and we were busy trying to save him, but unfortunately by the time the truck was lifted off the car the man was found dead.”
He however said that free flow of traffic had been restored on the ever-busy highway which connects the commercial town of Aba with Owerri, the Imo State capital.
The dual carriage highway just like other federal roads and most state roads in the South East zone, is in itself, a death-trap due to dilapidation following years of gross neglect.
