30 people reportedly died in a road accident that occurred just few minutes to the New Year near Bola Ige International market along new Ife-Ibadan Expressway, Gbagi, Ibadan, Oyo State.
An oncoming trailer was said to have rammed into commercial buses that conveyed the passengers, who were crushed to death by the entrance of the market.
A Toyota Camry and Nissan Micra cars were also said to have been crushed by the trailer.
The accident which occurred around 11:45pm, led to heavy gridlock and left vehicles enroute Ife from Ibadan stranded for several hours.
Many of the victims were said to have included people going to churches for the cross-over service at Iyana-Agbala and Egbeda Area of the capital city.
Also Read: Nigeria Will Survive, Thrive, Jonathan Says In New Year Message
Other victims included a pregnant woman, simply identified as Mrs. Funmilayo who was on her way to visit her in-laws and a bus driver identified as ‘Orobo Baba Weather’.
A witness, Waris Olatunde, who worked with Baba Weather said he narrowly escaped death.
“It was only God that saved me. Usually, I use to collect money for him from the passengers before he leaves the park but in this case he said since it was late already, I should take N200 and leave,” he said.
Confirming the development, the state Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), Adekunle Ajisebutu, puts the casualty figure at eleven.
However, another report from the office of the Sector Commander of the FRSC, Cecilia Alao, indicated that 12 people died as a result of the incident and their corpses were deposited at the morgue of Oyo State Specialist Hospital, Adeoyo.
The report noted that additional three persons out of the 10 injured victims, who were conveyed to Toun Specialist Hospital, for medical attention died on Tuesday morning.
