Twenty persons reportedly lost their lives in a road accident at Olokonla, along Bode-Saadu-Jebba Expressway in the Moro Local Government Area of Kwara State on Saturday.
Seventeen of the victims were burnt to death while 11 others sustained varying degrees of injury.
The Kwara State Fire Service and the state Sector Command of the Federal Road Safety Corps blamed the crash on speeding and wrongful overtaking.
It was also gathered that the multiple crash occurred about 3am on Saturday involving three vehicles: a commercial Mark truck with the number plate GGE614XM, a commercial Mitsubishi Canter Truck with the number plate, BRK534YX and a Toyota Hummer bus, marked KEY479YE.
Eyewitness account said the driver of the Toyota bus had lost control of the vehicle while trying to overtake a lorry loaded with pepper and a truck, leading to a head-on collision with another truck that was coming at the opposite lane of the road.
The impact of the crash reportedly sparked off fire.
The state Sector Commander of the FRSC, Jonathan Owoade, and the Director of the state Fire Service, Falade Olumuyiwa, confirmed the accident.
Owoade said, “One passenger was rescued from the Toyota Hummer bus by the FRSC personnel on arrival at the scene but the remaining 17 occupants were burnt beyond recognition as a result of the fire that gutted the bus while the rest three people died in the hospital facility. The fire service also got to the scene and was able to put out the fire.
“A total of 31 male adults were involved in the crash, 20 male adults died while 11 were rescued with varying degrees of injury ranging from bruises, burns and fractures. They were taken to Aduagba Clinic and Maternity, Olokonla, while the deceased were also deposited at the clinic facility.”