An early morning auto crash has claimed the lives of five young men in Ibadan, Oyo State capital.
The accident which occured at Idi Ori, along the ever-busy Ibadan-Oyo Expressway, cast a pall of grief and anger across the Akinyele Local Government Area of Oyo State.
An eyewitness said the tragedy began when a truck conveying bundles of second-hand imported clothing broke down near the Gospel Faith International area of Ojoo.
The source narrated that the driver of the broken vehicle was making efforts to determine the cause of the mechanical fault when he was approached and harassed by a group of notorious hoodlums known to extort stranded truck drivers in the area.
Despite the tense situation, the truck driver managed to secure a second truck to tow his vehicle.
Following the usual extortion routine, the driver reportedly offered some money to appease the hoodlums.
However, while a few of them dispersed, other five remained unsatisfied and aggressively pursued further payment.
Four of the touts forcefully mounted the driver’s side of the faulty truck and started to drag the steering wheel, while the fifth clung to the passenger side, demanding for more money.
In the midst of the controversy, another 40-foot articulated truck, loaded with heavy iron rods, was speeding down the expressway from Ojoo.
Amidst the struggle for control of the first truck’s steering, it veered off its lane and collided head-on with the oncoming vehicle.
Residents of the Idi Ori area, located off Shasha, were jolted from sleep around 5a.m. by a thunderous, bomb-like sound, a deadly collision involving two heavily loaded trucks that tragically ended the lives of the five victims, all suspected to be hoodlums.
Two of the hoodlums riding on the driver’s side died instantly, crushed beyond recognition.
The one clinging to the other side was also trapped under the truck’s body and load, and his remains could not be retrieved until nearly three hours after the crash.
The remaining two succumbed to their injuries while efforts were being made to take them to the hospital.
Security personnel from Ojoo and Moniya Divisional Police Stations were the first to arrive at the scene, working to control traffic and prevent further breakdown of law and order.
Their efforts were timely, as a mob of opportunists and criminal elements began to assemble, trying to siphon diesel from the trucks and loot the contents of the broken-down trailer.
Officers of the Oyo State Road Maintenance Authority and men of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) soon joined the operation, helping to cordon off the area, protect the goods, and restore order to the expressway.
The tragic incident had once again raised concerns about the growing menace of hoodlum activities along major highways in Oyo State, particularly the Ibadan-Oyo corridor, where extortion of truck drivers had become alarmingly routine.
Residents and road users called on the Oyo State Government and relevant security agencies to intensify patrol and enforce laws to curb these dangerous practices that now cost not just money, but also lives.
