The Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA) says a collision between two heavy-duty trailers, one laden with sand and the other conveying granite, has led to the death of a driver.

The Special Adviser to the Governor on Transportation, Mr Sola Giwa, said this in a statement on Friday in Lagos.

Giwa said the collision, which happened at Otedola Bridge inward Secretariat, along the Lagos–Ibadan Expressway, temporarily crippled vehicular movement.

“The principal incident involved a violent collision between two heavy-duty trailers, one laden with sand and the other conveying granite reportedly occasioned by a reckless contest for right of way.

“The forceful impact led to devastating consequences, resulting in the entrapment of the driver of the sand-laden trailer, who sustained fatal injuries and was later confirmed dead,” he said.

He added that operatives of LASTMA rescue team on routine surveillance and incident monitoring, responded promptly and extricated the trapped victim who was transferred to personnel of the Lagos State Ambulance Service (LASAMBUS).

“The LASAMBUS personnel conveyed him to the General Hospital, Ikeja, where he was pronounced dead. The driver of the second trailer was rescued alive and remarkably escaped unhurt,” he said.

He said in a related development that another traffic incident was recorded approximately 50 metres from the primary crash site, where a separate trailer fully loaded with flour lost stability and overturned.

“This further aggravating traffic congestion along the already compromised corridor.

“To forestall a breakdown of law and order and ensure public safety, security operatives from the Police Division in Alausa were promptly deployed to the scene.

“Cumulatively, the incidents obstructed nearly 80 per cent of the carriageway, thereby compelling the implementation of extensive traffic control and diversion measures,” he said.

He said, consequently, motorists travelling inward Lagos from Mowe, Kara Bridge and Redemption Camp axis were redirected through the Ojodu–Olole route, connecting Agidingbi, Coca-Cola, Secretariat, and 7-Up to enable continued movement toward Gbagada or Ojota with minimal inconvenience.

He called for strict compliance with traffic regulations, adding that observance of mutual courtesy among motorists remained indispensable in averting such needless loss of life. (NAN)

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