Petrol Tanker Loses Control, Kills 10 in Taraba
The police in Taraba has disclosed that the death toll in an auto crash involving a petrol tanker and a trailer which occurred on Wednesday afternoon in Zing town, Zing Local Government Area of the State has risen to ten.
The Police Public Relations Officer, ASP. David Missal who gave the update in a telephone interview with our correspondent said 20 others who sustained various degrees of injuries were receiving treatment at the General Hospital Zing and the Federal Medical Center, Jalingo.
He stated that,”We recovered eight dead bodies after the accident, but later in the evening we discovered a burnt corpse inside one of the vehicles and this morning again, one of the injured persons died on his way to Federal Medical Center, Jalingo.
“So, all together we have recorded 10 deaths from the accident. I can also confirm to you that several houses and shops were burnt because the accident happened in a densely populated area, more so that it was on a market day,” he said.
Mr. Nyanshako Ishaya who saw the accident told our correspondent that a Petrol tanker loaded with premium motor spirit (PMS), and was heading to Yola Adamawa State crashed into a trailer in Zing town on a market day and burst into flames, leading to the death of many while several houses and shops were burnt.
“The tanker which was traveling at high-speed lost control when its automated brake system (ABS) failed and ran into a moving trailer and immediately burst into flames.
“I saw a man riding on a motorcycle ahead of the tanker telling people to clear off the road saying the tanker had lost its break system and within a blink of an eye, the tanker crashed into a moving trailer.
“I also saw a pregnant woman and three others burning in the inferno, but I could not help as the fire was too much and I had to run for my life,” he narrated.
The accident is coming barely three weeks after a truck crushed the State Chairman of the Christian Association of Nigeria,CAN, Rev. Ben Ubeh to death in the same town.