Tragedy struck late yesterday as eight people were burnt to death late last night in an auto crash along Bida-Minna road involving a trailer and a Toyota Hiace bus belonging to Niger State Transport Company (NSTA).
The accident occurred along Kakanpegi village, near Bida town, when a bus belonging to the NSTA, coming from Lagos, ran into a stationary trailer while trying to avoid a bad portion of the road
An eye witness, Hamisu Ndajiwo said the bus in the cause of avoiding a bad portion of the Bida – Minna road ran into a trailer, crashed into a nearby bush before the vehicles went in flames burning all but one passenger burnt to death.
According to him, “I was at the scene of the accident few moments before it happened. Oh my God we saw people burning before our very eyes and we cannot do anything about it”.
Four of the accident victims are members of the family of the pastor of a church in Minna. They were his wife, Mrs. Hellen Samuel, her three children, Saviour, Insight and Purity.
Confirming the casualty figure, the Special Adviser to the Niger state Governor on Emergency and Disaster Management, Mohammed Shaba said eight bodies have been recovered from the scene of the accident, even though the bus was believed to have carried 18 passengers from Lagos.
He also said that the bodies of the victims have been deposited at the General Hospital Minna.