Edozie Udeojo
Four travellers along Gbagi express road in Kogi state escaped what could have been described as a Christmas tragedy as the vehicle which they were travelling in caught flames and got completely burnt down.
The vehicle a Toyota Tundra developed an electrical malfunction which resulted to a fire which started from the bonnet and later spread to other parts of the vehicle. Though no life was lost and properties were salvaged the vehicle was completely burnt as there was no fire extinguisher available to quench the fire.
Narrating the incident one of the occupants who identified himself as “john” said that the vehicle showed no signs of malfunction, not until they noticed fire emanating from the bonnet.
According to him they were initially trapped in the vehicle as the back doors were locked ; they barely managed to escape through the driver’s door.
In his words :
“The vehicle is a brand new Toyota Tundra; we were going smoothly and it showed no signs of any fault , all of a sudden we saw fire coming from the bunnet, we had stop in the middle of express road and we escaped from the drivers side because the back doors were locked.
“We managed to rescue our properties but unfortunately we couldn’t save the car because there was no fire extinguisher though we were able to get water from some nearby villagers but it was too late the fire spread quickly we had to save our properties, I thank God for my life and that of others.
The fire incident caused a traffic gridlock along the road which left other motorists stranded from over two hours as the burning vehicle was in the middle of the road.
Commenting on the development and official of the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) Kogi state , described the incident as unfortunate. He advised motorists to adhere to safety precautions while plying the roads most especially during this yuletide season. The official appealed to drivers to observe thorough vehicle inspection before embarking on any journey , ensure they have functional fire extinguishers, avoid over speeding by maintaining a maximum of 100kmph for cars and 90kmph for articulated vehicles.