By Izunna Okafor, Awka
After over 24 hours of silence, the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), Anambra State Command, has finally released details of the fatal crash that occurred on Tuesday, March 4, 2025, along the Idemili River by the Second Niger Bridge, confirming that four people lost their lives while two others sustained injuries in the crash.
The belated statement, issued on March 5, 2025, by the Sector Public Education Officer, RC Margaret B. Onabe, came following mounting pressure from journalist and concerned citizen who had questioned the FRSC’s prolonged silence on the tragic incident. The silence mirrored the agency’s failure to report another fatal crash that occurred in the state since Friday, February 28, 2025, a move that even saw a journalist expelled from an FRSC media group for exposing the unreported accident.
According to the FRSC statement, the Tuesday fatal crash involved a Mercedes trailer with an unstrapped container, which lost control while descending a hill at high speed and collided with five other vehicles—a white commercial bus and four tricycles parked by the roadside.
The FRSC confirmed that six people were involved in the crash, including two adult males and four adult females. It added that, sadly, four victims lost their lives on the spot, while two others sustained varying degrees of injuries. The agency further explained that the victims were rushed to the Crown Hospital and St. Edward Hospital, Obosi, while the injured were taken to Unity Hospital, Obosi.
According to FRSC, the vehicles involved in the crash include a white commercial bus (with the registration number: XED526XA); a blue Bajaj tricycle (with no registration number), a yellow Bajaj tricycle (with no registration number), another yellow Bajaj tricycle (with no registration number), and a third yellow Bajaj tricycle (with no registration number)
The FRSC stated that its operatives arrived at the scene to clear the wreckage and restore traffic flow, while also launching an investigation into the accident.
Meanwhile, Corps Commander Joyce Nnennaya Alexander used the opportunity to caution drivers against excessive speeding, emphasizing that road safety remains a collective responsibility.
Although the FRSC has finally released the details of the accident, many still remain critical of the agency’s unusual delayed and selective reporting of road crashes in the state, still questioning why the details of the February 28th fatal crash that similarly claimed lives in the state are yet to be made available to the public by the agency till date.
