TRUCK CRUSHES 4 IN BENIN

Truck crushes 4 in Benin
From TONY OSAUZO, Benin
Wednesday, March 10, 2010
Four persons were crushed to death yesterday at Uselu Market along Ugbowo-Lagos Road, Benin when a trailer with registration number XG 633 BEN had a brake failure. The driver of the trailer, according to eyewitnesses, wanted to avert running into the market when it swerved to the opposite direction, crushing the four persons. The driver himself sustained serious injuries.

The victims are Mrs. Rita Oshawo, a nurse whose husband and children were waiting on the other side of the road, two bike riders and an unidentified young man.

According to the witnesses, the trailer tried to avoid a group of street traders who engaged the state taskforce team on illegal trading in a heated argument along the road.

Sympathizers who thronged the scene were seen digging into the sand in an attempt to rescue any trapped victim.

Meanwhile, Edo State Sector Commander, Mr. Henry Olatunji, who confirmed that only two persons died in the accident, said other injured victims had been taken to the University of Benin Teaching Hospital (UBTH) for treatment.

He warned against street trading, which, he said, was illegal and could endanger peoples' lives.