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No fewer than 69 persons burnt to death Sunday evening when a trailer loaded with Premium Motor Spirit otherwise known as petrol that was descending from Army barracks side of Onitsha Enugu express way lost control and rammed into the Asaba Motor Park at Upper Iweka, Onitsha and exploded.
Reports say eleven vehicles mostly commuter buses and two motorcycles inside the Asaba Park Onitsha including the 40 foot tanker laden with petrol burnt beyond repairs inside the park.
Governor Willie Obiano who immediately rushed to the scene of the accident, on hearing it, wept on seeing the number of casualties. The Governor told the relations of the victims to take heart and promised that the state will help in ensuring that the living victims are well taken care of in their respective hospitals
According to the Nigerian Red Cross Society Chairman, Prof Peter Emeka Kathy “we have sixty nine burnt to dead persons as at now, there are other 30 casualties, a casualty is a living person, a dead person is no longer a casualty, so 69 persons are dead, and they have bee evaluated to various mortuaries in Onitsha, from Toronto to St Charles Boromneo Mortuaries and others in town”.
“The tanker driver lost his break while descending the hill from Boromeo and Army Barracks end of the Onitsha-Enugu Expressway towards Upper Iweka.
“Instead of looking for a wide gutter to break his speed, he veered into a park, where commercial vehicles were taking on passengers.
Most of the people that died were inside vehicles in the park.
“If the driver of the tanker were alive, he would have been arraigned in the court because it is multiple murder. He was reckless. He knew he was fully loaded with petrol and yet he decided to direct his vehicle into a motor park.
“He does not care for human lives. How can you veer into a park where you know buses were filled with people, when the road is wide enough for you to control your vehicle?”
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