The death toll from the tanker explosion on Ugwu-Onyeama axis of the Enugu-Onitsha Expressway has risen from 18 to 21 as recently confirmed by the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC).
The Sector Commander of the FRSC, Enugu State Command, Mr Franklin Agbakoba, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Enugu on Tuesday that additional two males and one female died in the hospital.
NAN recalls that the incident, which happened on Saturday, January 25, at about 11:30 a.m. when a fuel-laden tanker had a brake failure, fell and exploded, left 11 road users dead before emergency responders came to the scene.
NAN reports that the deceased were evacuated by the FRSC officers after officials of the Enugu State Fire Service extinguished the inferno while the injured were taken to hospitals in Enugu for treatment.
The sector commander said the additional three people could not make it due to the severe body injuries and burns they sustained.
Agbakoba disclosed that recent harmonised statistics revealed that the incident involved 44 people as well as 16 vehicles, both commercial and private and a commercial tricycle.
He said that 23 persons, which included eight males and 15 females, were injured.
The sector commander further said that the injured persons were taken to ESUTH Teaching Hospital, Parklane, Enugu, National Orthopedic Hospital, Enugu and the UNTH, Ituku-Ozalla in the outskirts of Enugu metropolis.
He said that nine admitted victims, including three males and six females, had been discharged, while 11, which included three males and eight females, are still on admission.
Agbakoba, who is also a Corps Commander, said: “For now, traffic have been diverted to the inward Enugu-bound lane of the ever busy Enugu-Onitsha Expressway.
“We have continued evacuation of burnt vehicles in the scene of the accident in anticipation of re-opening the section of the road soon,” he said. (NAN)
