Nine people were burnt beyond recognition while eight others sustained various degrees of injuries in a fatal road crash near Zangoro village along the Bauchi-Maiduguri Federal Highway on Monday night.
The Federal Road Safety Corps confirmed the incident in a First Information Report issued on Tuesday by the Bauchi Sector Command.
According to the report, the crash occurred at about 11:20 p.m. on Monday and was reported to the FRSC five minutes later.
Senior Road Marshal Assistant Suleiman Adamu Toro said FRSC personnel arrived at the scene at about 11:40 p.m., recording a response time of 15 minutes.
He said the crash involved a commercial Toyota bus with registration number DRZ 133 LG and a MAN diesel tipper used for transporting sand, which had no registration number.
Toro said a total of 17 male adults were involved in the accident. Nine of them were confirmed dead after being burnt beyond recognition, while the remaining eight sustained injuries.
He identified a tyre burst while the commercial bus was in motion as the probable cause of the crash.
“Damaged vehicles and other items recovered from the scene have been handed over to the Motor Traffic Division of the Bauchi State Police Command for further investigation,” Toro said.
He added that FRSC personnel worked to establish the identities of the victims, who were identified on Tuesday.
The injured victims were taken to the Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University Teaching Hospital, Bauchi, for treatment, while the bodies of those who died were deposited in the hospital’s morgue.
The FRSC urged motorists to ensure their vehicles are in good condition before embarking on long journeys, especially at night, to avoid preventable crashes.
