One person has died following multiple crashes on the Otedola Bridge, Lagos, in the early hours of Friday, leading to a long-stretched gridlock that has left commuters and motorists grounded.

The accident, which happened inward Secretariat along the Lagos–Ibadan Expressway, left thousands of people stranded on the ever-busy highway.

Traffic authorities in Lagos said 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,” the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA) said in a statement.

LASTMA said a trapped victim was extricated and transferred to personnel of the Lagos State Ambulance Service (LASAMBUS), who 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,” the agency said in a statement by its Director, Public Affairs and Enlightenment Department, Adebayo Taofiq.

According to the Rapid Response Squad of the Lagos State Police Command a secondary accident occurred as a result of the overturned truck.

“Two serious accidents have occurred at Otedola Bridge, inward Lagos. In the first incident, a fully loaded truck overturned, spilling its consignments onto the road and covering about 90 per cent of the carriageway,” the post read.

“The second accident occurred directly behind the first crash, compounding traffic disruption in the area.Emergency responders have been alerted. Motorists are advised to drive with caution around the area.”

Police Deployed, Motorists Redirected

Security operatives have been deployed to the scene of the accident to provide adequate security cover, manage crowd control and support ongoing rescue and recovery operations.

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

“Consequently, motorists travelling inward Lagos from the 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 towards Gbagada or Ojota with minimal inconvenience.”

The accident is the latest in the long-list of crashes on that axis of the highway which links Lagos to the South-South and South-East regions of the country.

On January 18, two commuters died after a multiple-vehicle accident on the Kara Bridge, inward Mowe, axis of the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway.

About three months before that, specifically on October 30, 2025, six people, including a police officer, were killed in a crash involving multiple trucks, one of which was a fuel tanker. (Channels)