The Acting Director, Lagos State Fire Service, Mr Rasaki Musibau, on Wednesday urged motorists to stop abandoning their faulty vehicles on the road, especially at night, to avert accidents.
Musibau made the call during his visit to a multiple accident scene involving five vehicles along the Lagos-Badagry Expressway, opposite Ojo Military Cantonment in Lagos.
The accident claimed two lives and left five others injured.He said that it was disheartening that motorists were not cautious of the dangers inherent in abandoning their malfunctioning or faulty vehicles on the road overnight.
The accident was primarily caused by three vehicles which include one IVECO Tipper Truck loaded with sand, one Mack Trailer loaded with generating sets and one other unknown car, which were abandoned and stationed on the expressway overnight.
A tanker laden with 33,000 liters PMS and a Datsun car stocked with cartons of frozen fish with three passengers rammed into the three abandoned stationed vehicles at about 4:25 a.m on Wednesday.
This resulted in the spilling of the petroleum content on the road which ignited fire. The fire burnt the tanker carrying the PMS, the trailer loaded with generating sets and the unknown car, while the remaining two vehicles were slightly affected.
Two out of the three occupants (a male and a female) of the Datsun car were killed in the fire and remains recovered and released to Onireke Police Division.
Five other people were rescued and taken to hospitals for treatment, he said.Musibau appealed to motorists to ensure safety of other road users.
He also urged them to ensure proper maintenance of their vehicles to avoid indiscriminate breakdown on the roads.According to him, adherence to these tips will guarantee safety on the roadside and prevent loss of lives via accidents.