At least nine people were killed and three others injured in a bus combustion accident along a busy highway in Ogun state, southwest Nigeria, the road police confirmed on Friday.
Sector commander of the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) Clement Oladele who confirmed the incident to Xinhua news agency said the Thursday evening accident involved a Toyota Hiace bus at Ijebu-Ife along the Sagamu-Benin highway.
He said the ill-fated bus was conveying 17 adults and two children before the incident.
The FRSC official said 10 other passengers were rescued with three of them sustaining serious injuries.
Preliminary investigation showed that the bus, heading toward Lagos, Nigeria’s economic hub, was sufferering malfunction while conveying the passengers with some inflammable chemical products, Oladele added.
“The vehicle had to stop intermittently at several times to repair faulty fuel pump and fuel tank which they kept on managing by tying ropes to support the malfunctioned fuel tank,” he said.
While the driver managed the vehicle to Lagos, there was sudden spark and explosion, which engulfed the vehicle in fire while on motion, according to Oladele.
“After the fire was extinguished by the Nigeria Fire Service, a total of nine persons, consisting of seven adults and two children were confirmed dead,” he said.
Oladele advised motorists to adhere strictly with the road safety rules to prevent this type of avoidable incident.
Bus explosion in Nigeria leaves nine dead
