NO fewer than 12 persons killed yesterday in the heart of Awka, Anambra State when a tanker carrying palm kernel oil lost its brakes and rammed into Bus Park on the foot of the pedestrian cross at the popular UNIZIK junction in the town.
Several people who sustained various degrees of injuries were rushed to various hospitals in the Anambra State capital for treatment.
ACCIDENT AT UNIZIK JUNCTION ON ENUGU–ONITSHA EXPRESS WAY IN AWKA
The tanker, which was coming from the Enugu end of the Enugu –Onitsha expressway, lost control as it was descending the UNIZIK slope and hit a bus loaded with passengers and then dragged the same bus into the very busy motor park where it damaged about seven other buses.
Among those who either lost their lives or sustained injuries were drivers, motor park operators and recharge card sellers.
The tanker, which somersaulted severally as it was hitting other vehicles, had its body cut into pieces and its contents spilled along the road and in the motor park.
The impact of the summersault of the tanker adversely affected the beams of the pedestrian bridge, thus making part of the bridge to lose its alignment.
The accident, which happened at the time offices had closed for the day, caused an excruciating traffic jam on the road as many people stopped at the scene.
Men of the Federal Road Safety Commission, FRSC, the Nigerian Army, the Police and other good spirited people volunteered their vehicles for conveying the wounded persons to the hospital.
A similar accident on the same spot last year claimed five lives, but the difference was that the one of last year did not get to the motor park.
Sympathizers at the scene of the accident yesterday said there is need to relocate the various motor parks which have their loading bays beside the expressway to avoid such accidents in future.
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