By IBIRONKE ARIYO

All the 15 occupants of a Toyota bus were killed and burnt beyond recognition on Saturday when the bus had a head-on collision with a Mercedes truck on the Port Harcourt-Enugu Highway.

Spokesman of the FRSC, Assistant Corps Marshal Bisi Kazeem, confirmed the accident in a statement he issued on Sunday in Abuja.

Kazeem stated that the accident took place at the Enugu end of the highway at about 8.20 p.m.

“The victims have been given mass burial. All obstructions have been cleared. Enugu State Fire Service already extinguished the fire in the bus.

“The fatal crash is blamable on several factors including fatigue, which must have made one of the drivers to sleep on the wheels,” he stated.

Kazeem quoted the FRSC Corps Marshal, Mr Dauda Biu, as advising motorists to desist from night journeys to reduce fatalities from road crashes.

He added that Biu noted that most fleet operators and other vehicle owners, including private vehicle owners addicted to night journeys did so for selfish economic gains.

The FRSC boss observed that most night travellers indulged in overloading of vehicles with passengers and goods.

“Travellers should plan their journeys for the day time because when crashes occur away from FRSC rescue points, it is difficult to access help from other motorists at night,” Kazeem also quoted Biu as saying. (NAN)