A senator from Delta State, Ede Dafinone, and a former Secretary to the Delta State Government, Patrick Ukah, supported rescue efforts after a train on the Warri-Itakpe corridor derailed on Monday with 482 people on board.
Four people lost their lives in the accident during which four coaches capsized.
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Witnesses at the scene of the accident told PREMIUM TIMES the two dignitaries rallied to rescue affected passengers contrary to an earlier claim by the Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Transport, Funsho Adebiyi, that the two individuals were among the victims of the accident.
Mr Adeniyi had said in a statement on Tuesday that a full investigation into the cause of the accident had begun.
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The News Agency of Nigeria reports that the accident occurred near Agbor in Delta on Monday.
“Preliminary reports indicate that four coaches capsized while one coach derailed, resulting in the unfortunate loss of four lives, comprising two adult females, one adult male and one infant passenger,” he said.
“A total of 442 passengers were booked on the train, while 40 crew members, security personnel and third-party service providers were also on board, bringing the total number of persons on the train to 482.
“Notable individuals on board include the Senator representing Delta Central Senatorial District, Ede Dafinone, and a former Secretary to the Delta State Government, Mr Patrick Ukah,” he said.
But this newspaper has since found that Messrs Dafinone and Ukah were not passengers on the train. Rather, they rallied to the scene to support rescue efforts.
Mr Adebiyi said rescue and evacuation operations were immediately activated, with support from the Delta State Government, the National Emergency Management Agency, the Federal Road Safety Corps, and the police.
He said the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, local authorities, security agencies, and other emergency responders were involved in the operations.
“The rescue and emergency operations were completed by 6.30 p.m.,” he said.
He added that injured passengers were evacuated to medical facilities in Agbor for treatment.
“As at the time of this release, 24 serious injuries were recorded, while several other passengers sustained varying degrees of injuries and are receiving medical attention.
“One NRC staff member suffered a traumatic limb injury and is currently receiving treatment and is reported to be in stable condition,” Mr Adebiyi said.
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He said the Federal Ministry of Transport and the Nigerian Railway Corporation expressed sympathy to the families of the deceased and prayed for the quick recovery of the injured.
“The corporation also appreciates the swift intervention of the Delta State Government, emergency responders, security agencies, NRC Mechanical Directorate, Special Rescue and Emergency Team, medical personnel, and members of the public who assisted in the rescue efforts.
“The full onboard manifest has been retrieved and will be made available upon request by relevant authorities.
“Efforts are ongoing to identify all the injured and deceased persons for proper documentation,” he said.
EDITOR’S NOTE: This post has been updated to correct an erroneous claim by the Federal Ministry of Transport that Senator Dafinone and former Delta SSG were among passengers on the affected train. We have since learned that the individuals were only at the accident scene to support rescue efforts.
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