- The General Manager of LASTMA Mr. Bakare Oki however appealed to owners of articulated trucks to always carry out periodic safety training and enlightenment campaigns
LASTMA operatives displayed swift action on Sunday, rescuing an injured driver and a ‘motor boy’ from an empty articulated 40ft flatbed truck that toppled off a bridge in Lagos State.
As detailed in a press release by Mr. Adebayo Taofiq, the Director of Public Affairs and Enlightenment Department at LASTMA, the incident unfolded as the speeding truck ascended the bridge near the ‘Sifax’ Company by Ijora ‘Olopa,’ heading towards Apapa.
The statement reads, “The injured driver was rescued by Lastma personnel in a pool of blood gushing out from his head while the motor boy sustained a serious waist fracture by his spinal cord.
“A preliminary investigation revealed that the driver of the articulated 40ft empty flatbed truck lost total control due to brake failure while struggling a ‘Right of Way’ (R.O.W) with another fully loaded truck trying to climb the High Bridge inward Apapa.
“Immediately the unfortunate incident happened other articulated truck drivers around ‘Sifax’ Company supported Lastma personnel and rescued both the driver and motor boy who were trapped under the truck.
“Lastma Goriola Jimoh ‘Zebra’ (Zone 22) Apapa who led the rescue operations confirmed that the rescued injured driver and his motor boy were rushed to the General Hospital at Apapa for immediate medical treatment.
“The crashed articulated truck was evacuated by Officials of the Lasema Response Unit (LRU) while Lastma personnel handed over the case to Policemen from Ijora – Badia Police Station for further investigation.”
“The General Manager of LASTMA Mr. Bakare Oki however appealed to owners of articulated trucks to always carry out periodic safety training and enlightenment campaigns for their drivers on the need to obey road signs speed limit while driving on highways within and outside the state,” the statement adds.