4 family members, others perish in Niger auto crash

Up to 12 passengers have reportedly died and three others seriously injured in an accident in Agaie area of Niger state at the weekend.

The accident reportedly involved a bus which had 15 passengers on board which had head on collision with a trailer.

Blueprint gathered from an eyewitness that the driver of the trailer was reckless in overtaking, resulting in the accident

The Director Media and Strategy, Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Disaster Management Niger State, Habibu Wushishi, confirmed in Minna that 12 out of the passengers (three of whom were of the same family) died on the spot, adding that, “three passengers including the driver got different degrees of injuries and were rushed to the general hospital Lapai”.

He said the bodies of the deceased have since been evacuated by the Federal Road Safety Corps, Niger State Emergency Management Agency (NSEMA) and Police with the kind assistance of good Samaritans at the scene of the accident.

Meanwhile, Farmer Governor Mohammed Umaru Bago of Niger state has described the accident as sad and unfortunate.

He sympathised with the family of the Barwan Agaie, former Commissioner for Information and one time Permanent Commissioner, Civil Service Commission, Alhaji Adamu Aliyu Muhammad, who lost two wives and two children in the accident.

In a condolence message by his Chief Press Secretary, Bologi Ibrahim, the farmer governor extended his deepest sympathy to the Barwan Agaie and the families of other deceased victims.

He said “it is really a trying moment for the Barwan Agaie and the family members of other victims and I really shares in their grief. I encourages the Barwan Agaie and families of other deceased victims to look up to Allah alone to come out of this difficult moment”.

He also prayed for the speedy recovery of those that sustained injuries in the accident.