Dare Babalola
A woman operating a roadside Point of Sale (POS) business was seriously injured on Monday after a fully loaded 40-foot container truck lost control and crashed along the Second Rainbow corridor inward Oshodi in Lagos.
The incident, which occurred near the Police Tactical Team Station on the service lane, also left a commercial mini bus badly damaged after the articulated vehicle overturned onto it and rammed into nearby roadside shops.
According to a statement issued by Adebayo Taofiq, the truck driver reportedly lost control while transporting a loaded container, causing the vehicle to veer off course before crashing into the commercial area.
The Lagos State Traffic Management Authority said the impact of the accident caused panic in the area as the truck descended on the affected section of the road, destroying property and disrupting business activities around the corridor.
The injured female POS operator reportedly suffered severe leg injuries during the incident. She was rescued by officers attached to the Police Tactical Team stationed nearby and rushed to a medical facility for urgent treatment.
Officials of Lagos State Traffic Management Authority were immediately deployed to the scene to manage traffic, coordinate rescue efforts and secure the area in collaboration with security agencies and emergency responders.
LASTMA disclosed that the truck driver was arrested shortly after the crash and handed over to officers of the Nigeria Police Force for investigation and possible prosecution.
Authorities also deployed a recovery truck to remove the overturned articulated vehicle and the damaged mini bus from the road in order to restore normal traffic flow along the busy Oshodi corridor.
Police operatives from the Orile-Iganmu Division were said to have commenced preliminary investigations and documentation to determine the circumstances that led to the accident.
Despite the scale of the crash and the destruction recorded around the area, LASTMA stated that traffic movement was largely maintained due to the swift intervention of its personnel.
Reacting to the incident, the General Manager of LASTMA, Olalekan Bakare-Oki, renewed calls on owners and operators of articulated vehicles to ensure proper maintenance and routine mechanical inspections of heavy-duty trucks before putting them on the road.
He stressed that faulty braking systems and poor vehicle maintenance remain major threats to public safety and road infrastructure in Lagos State.
Bakare-Oki also urged transport companies, fleet operators and logistics firms to strictly comply with established safety standards to prevent avoidable road tragedies involving articulated vehicles.
