The Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA) has confirmed that two people, including a serving police officer, lost their lives in a fatal accident involving a container-laden truck and a commercial tricycle earlier today along the Ijora Causeway, inward Ijora 7Up.
Director, Public Affairs and Enlightenment, Mr. Taofiq Adebayo, said preliminary findings showed that the 40-foot container truck, with registration number XP 368 AKD, lost control while attempting a dangerous manoeuvre beneath the Ijora Bridge.
The truck overturned and fell on a tricycle (KJA 364 QN) carrying unsuspecting passengers.“Regrettably, two passengers, including a police officer, were killed instantly, while two others, including the tricycle operator, sustained serious leg fractures,” Adebayo stated.
According to him, security operatives moved the remains of the police officer to a morgue in Yaba, while relatives of the second victim, a female passenger, retrieved her body from the scene.
In a swift rescue effort led by LASTMA in collaboration with emergency responders, two survivors were pulled out of the wreckage alive and taken by the Lagos State Ambulance Service (LASAMBUS) to Jimsan Hospital, Ijora, for urgent medical treatment.
Adebayo added that combined security teams from Badia, Trinity, and Kirikiri Police Divisions provided protection at the scene after irate onlookers attempted to set the container truck ablaze. Their intervention helped maintain order and safeguard emergency workers.
General Manager of LASTMA, Mr. Olalekan Bakare-Oki, described the incident as “deeply grievous and most regrettable,” extending condolences to the bereaved families and prayers for the speedy recovery of the injured.
He also commended the professionalism of emergency and security agencies, noting that their swift response prevented further loss of life and escalation of the situation.
Adebayo reiterated LASTMA’s warning to truck and articulated vehicle drivers to exercise extreme caution, particularly when navigating bridges, intersections, and heavily trafficked corridors, to avoid similar tragedies.
