LAGOS AUGUST 1ST (URHOBOTODAY)-Four persons were, in the wee hours of Monday, burnt to death in an auto crash that occurred at the popular Ekiugbo Junction along the Eas-West road, Ughelli North Local Government Area of Delta State.

Sources said a Toyota Sienna space bus conveying suspected illegally-refined diesel lost control and rammed a parked Dangote truck.

The minivan was said to be escaping from security operatives who had mounted a roadblock when it lost control and rammed the parked truck, causing an explosion.

Video footage from the scene obtained from witnesses revealed some of the victims burnt beyond recognition and others lay on the ground and covered with leaves.

Meanwhile, the portion of the road where the accident occurred, it was gathered, has been barricaded from road users.

Unit Commander of the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), Ken Ikechukwu, confirmed the tragedy, saying it occurred at 6:15 a.m.

Narrating to journalists, he said: “There was this Toyota car coming from Warri end towards Ughelli and the Toyota was carrying bunkery diesel.

“On the way because of the speed violation, the driver went and hit a parked truck and got in flames.

“As a matter of fact, four people were consumed, burnt beyond recognition at that point,” he noted.

He reiterated that besides the impact, the vehicle was carrying illegally-refined diesel which caused the inferno.

He added that the four persons who died included the Toyota Sienna driver and the occupants of the truck who were inside the truck as of when the accident occurred.

Ikechukwu further disclosed that the Hausa community in the area came and took possession of their corpses.

The FRSC officer has, however, advised drivers and commuters to abstain from carrying inflammatory liquid inside their vehicles and eschew speeding.

Nigeria Tribune