A tragic road crash that occurred on Sunday night along the Nteje–Awka road in Anambra State has left eight people dead and six others injured.
The accident took place around 9 p.m. near the New Terminal at Ukpo Junction, in Dunukofia Local Government Area, and involved a Toyota Hiace bus with registration number EKP375XM and an unregistered Mack tanker.
Eyewitnesses reported that the bus, which was en route from Abakaliki to Onitsha, was speeding when it attempted to overtake the tanker travelling towards Awka on a single-lane road. The maneuver ended in a collision.
“A total of eight people — four males and four females — lost their lives in the crash. Six others, including two men and four women, sustained varying degrees of injuries. Two of the victims died instantly,” a source at the scene said.
The Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) confirmed the incident in a statement issued on Monday by Margaret Onabe, the Sector Public Education Officer for the Anambra Sector Command.
Onabe stated that officials from the RS5.33 Nteje Unit responded promptly, providing first aid and transporting the injured to hospitals, while the bodies of the deceased were deposited at Jerusalem Mortuary in Nteje.
She attributed the cause of the crash to excessive speed.
“The Federal Road Safety Corps Anambra Sector Command regrets to announce a fatal crash on April 27, at approximately 9 p.m. along the Nteje-Awka route, near the New Terminal close to Ukpo Junction,” the statement read.
“According to eyewitness accounts and preliminary investigations, a Mack tanker without a registration number collided with a Toyota Hiace bus, registered as EKP375XM.
“The bus, which was travelling from Abakaliki to Onitsha, was speeding and overtook dangerously before colliding with the tanker, which was heading towards Awka on a single carriageway. The crash resulted in eight fatalities—four males and four females—and injured six others, comprising two males and four females.”
Onabe also conveyed the FRSC’s condolences and reiterated the agency’s call for responsible driving.
“The FRSC Anambra Sector Command extends its condolences to the families of the victims and wishes a speedy recovery to those injured. The Sector Commander, Corps Commander Joyce Nnennaya Alexander, has urged drivers to prioritise their safety and that of others by maintaining a safe speed and ensuring that the road is clear before overtaking to prevent such tragic incidents.
“Drivers must ensure they drive at a minimum safe speed and only overtake when the road is clear,” she quoted the commander as saying.
She added that the Sector Commander visited the survivors receiving treatment at Regina Caeli Hospital and Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu Teaching Hospital to assess their condition and offer support.
According to her, the FRSC will continue intensifying awareness campaigns, enforcing traffic rules, and collaborating with stakeholders such as the National Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) to promote road safety and reduce future accidents.
