No fewer than 30 persons were feared dead in two accidents in Edo and Lagos states.
In Edo State, dozens of passengers were feared dead when an 18-seater bus plunged into the notorious Ovia Bridge, by Iguiye village, on the Benin-Sagama Highway on Tuesday morning.
The fate of the driver and passengers in the bus were unknown at the time of this report, but eyewitnesses say there were no divers readily available to carry out search and rescue operations.
A video in circulation showed bystanders screaming for rescuers nearly one hour after the loaded bus skidded off the road and plunged into the river.
In a related development about 20 persons were feared dead in a boat collision accident in Imore Lagoon, Lagos State.
It was gathered that two boats involved in the accident were loaded with their maximum capacity of 16 passengers each when the accident occurred in the evening hours of Monday.
Lagos State Police image-maker, Mr Benjamin Hundeyin (DSP), said the police were informed of the accident through a report made at the Ilesha police division at about 7 p.m. on Monday.
Hundeyin, in a statement made available to newsmen in Lagos on Tuesday afternoon, revealed that the passenger boats involved in the accident were unregistered.
He said the boats and the goods drowned when the boats capsized, adding that intervention of the police led to the rescue of 11 of the supposed 32 passengers involved.
He said those rescued had injuries and were rushed to the Naval Town Hospital in Ojo for medical attention, adding that search and rescue operations were ongoing for the remaining victims.
The management of the Lagos State Emergency Management Agency (LASEMA) was not readily available for comments at the time of this report.
