Seven passengers lost their lives on Sunday when a commercial bus caught fire at Iyana Oworo, near the popular Third Mainland Bridge in Lagos State.
Other occupants of the 14-passenger Mazda vehicle with registration number KJA 699 GY, however, escaped with burns, according to a statement by the Permanent Secretary of the Lagos State Emergency Management Agency, Olufemi Oke-Osanyintolu.
“Further investigation gathered at the scene revealed that the incident occurred due to the driver’s recklessness and overspeeding, which resulted in the fire with 12 passengers trapped.
“Fortunately, the driver escaped with some burns, 3 female adults were rescued and rushed to Gbagada General Hospital while a male adult was attended to by LASAMBUS at the scene,” the statement partly read.
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The agency said the remains of the seven burnt passengers have been bagged and evacuated from the scene while the carcass of the razed bus has been removed from the road for resumption of vehicular activities at the mouth of the bridge which spans over 11.8km.
The Third Mainland Bridge is reputed to be the busiest in Nigeria, alongside the Carter Bridge and Eko Bridge, connect the Island area of Lagos to the mainland.
