The Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA) has confirmed that two people died and two others were critically injured in separate accidents that occurred in the early hours of Monday.
One of the accidents occurred on the Otedola Bridge on the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway towards Berger, while the other happened on the Third Mainland Bridge, near the University of Lagos waterfront. The accidents were recorded in the separate locations between 2.30 a.m. and 5.00 a.m. on Monday.
|
|
The Director of Public Affairs and Enlightenment Department, Adebayo Taofiq, said in a press release that the first accident occurred around 2:30 a.m. on the Otedola Bridge, inward Berger, on the Lagos–Ibadan corridor.
Preliminary findings indicated that an unregistered vehicle with two occupants, including the driver, was travelling at what officials described as “an egregiously unlawful and hazardous velocity” before it rammed into a moving, heavily laden trailer.
|
|
|---|
The impact killed both occupants instantly, while the trailer driver fled the scene with the articulated vehicle.
The Otedola Bridge axis has witnessed recurring accidents in recent years, with authorities warning that speeding, overloaded trucks, and night-time driving contribute to fatal outcomes.
LASTMA said its 24-hour Night-Gang Teams deployed within the Otedola corridor responded promptly, evacuating the bodies from the main carriageway to prevent secondary crashes.
The statement said officers also cleared the wreckage to restore traffic flow.
Personnel of the Isheri Police Division provided security support, while the State Environmental Health Monitoring Unit (SHEMU) removed the remains in line with public health procedures.
Second crash
A second crash occurred at about 5:00 a.m. on the Third Mainland Bridge, near the University of Lagos waterfront, inward Lagos Island.
Mr Taofiq said the accident, which involved an empty tanker and a sachet-water distribution van with number plate SMK 67 XH, left two people severely injured.
Officials of the Lagos State Ambulance Service (LASAMBUS) administered first aid before transferring the victims to a nearby hospital.
The bridge, one of the busiest in Africa, has also been the site of multiple collisions in 2025, including a February incident in which 14 passengers narrowly survived a high-speed crash.
Warning against reckless driving
The incidents occurred amid persistently high crash rates across Lagos. Between January and September 2025 alone, the agency reported 1,006 accidents, resulting in 87 deaths and 666 injuries, according to official data.
A recent report identified the Lagos–Ibadan Expressway, where one of Monday’s crashes occurred, as “Nigeria’s deadliest highway.”
Amid Monday’s back-to-back incidents, LASTMA noted that its personnel remained on the ground to regulate traffic across both corridors and prevent further obstructions.
LASTMA General Manager, Olalekan Bakare-Oki, condoled with the families of the deceased, describing the fatalities as “tragic and wholly preventable.”
Mr Bakare-Oki warned that reckless speeding and disregard for road regulations continue to endanger lives.
He reiterated the agency’s strict enforcement of government-approved speed limits, saying compliance is “indispensable for the preservation of human life and the avoidance of catastrophic avoidable tragedies.”
He also praised the professionalism of the Night-Gang Teams, noting that LASTMA’s 24-hour surveillance and rapid-response operations, expanded ahead of the festive season, would continue with “unwavering vigour” in alignment with the Lagos State Government’s broader safety mandate.
LASTMA urged motorists to strictly adhere to speed limits to curb what authorities describe as an escalating public-safety crisis.
