A
passenger train that departed Lagos for Kano derailed at Jebba in the
early hours of Saturday, leaving at least two dead and many passengers
injured… The train left Lagos at 12:00 noon on Friday with dozens of passengers and consignments, a survivor said.
The
survivor who spoke with PREMIUM TIMES on Saturday afternoon said the
crash occurred after the train suffered brake failure at Jebba Train
Station shortly after 7 a.m.
The
survivor, who asked that his identity be protected, said the accident
claimed at least four lives with undetermined number of injured
commuters currently undergoing treatment at various emergency facilities
in the town.
“The
train left Lagos yesterday and crashed in Jebba this morning around 7
a.m. as it was trying to stop for those of us coming to Jebba,” the
survivor said. “It was due to brakes failure.”
Officials
of the Federal Road Safety Commission, FRSC, who responded to the
emergency said two persons were confirmed dead after detached coaches
from the train fell on passengers.
Bisi
Kazeem, FRSC’s Head of Media Relations, told PREMIUM TIMES the train was
conveying goods to Kano, but had few passengers on-board.
“The
accident occurred this morning near Jebba Paper Mill and we can confirm
that two people, unfortunately, lost their lives and three people were
injured,” Mr. Kazeem said. “The train is used more as a cargo train, but
it had some travellers inside.”
Mr.
Kazeem further stated that road safety officials and police worked
together to rescue trapped passengers and evacuate the injured to the
hospital.
“With
the support of the police, we were able to get those who were trapped
out alive and took those who survived injuries to the hospital.”