48 persons died in road accidents last October in Kwara – FRSC

By Kalu Onyemaechi

The Kwara Command of the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) says road accidents claimed as much as 48 lives in 61 Road Traffic Crashes (RTCs) in October this year.

According to People Gazette, the sector commander of the FRSC in Kwara, Jonathan Owoade, added that 25 crashes occurred in September, while the rest 36 were recorded in October.

He said that while no life was lost in the crashes that occurred in September, 48 persons lost their lives in the October crashes.

“In October, there was an increase in RTCs in the state. We had 36 crashes involving 62 vehicles, 16 fatal cases, 17 serious cases and three minor cases.

“While 257 persons were involved, 139 persons were injured, sadly 48 persons lost their lives,” Mr Owoade said.

He said out of 25 crashes involving 37 vehicles in September, there were no fatalities, adding that 18 cases were serious while seven cases were minor.

Mr Owoade said that of the 157 persons involved in the crashes, 68 persons were injured while there were no deaths.

He attributed the crashes to brake failure, speed violation, loss of control, speed limit violation, wrong overtaking and mechanically deficient vehicles.

The sector commander said that negative attitude and negligence to road safety rules by motorists were some of the challenges of road safety in Nigeria.

“Drivers and road users are advised to follow laid down road safety procedures, obeying traffic signs, keeping the vehicle well maintained and clean. They should not do anything that would distract their attention while on the wheels, especially making phone calls or drunk driving.

“Avoid overloading, speed violations and dangerous driving. Let us drive safely to stay alive,” Mr Owoade counselled road users.