The Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) says four persons, including a child, died in a lone crash on the Cham–Numan Road in the Balanga Local Government Area of Gombe State.
The sector commander of the FRSC, Samson Kaura, confirmed the accident in Gombe on Sunday.
Mr Kaura said 14 children who were in the bus sustained varying degrees of injuries, while 20 other kids escaped unhurt in the crash involving a Toyota Hummer on Sunday.
He said the corpses of those who died in the crash had been deposited at the Primary Health Care Centre, Cham.
The commander attributed the crash to loss of control due to speed.
“The crash happened around 2:00 a.m. in the night when a Toyota Hummer bus from Toro in Bauchi State to Adamawa State, carrying mostly children, lost control along Cham-Numan Road, resulting in the crash.
“The vehicle was moving above the recommended speed, and that resulted in loss of control and eventual crash.
“This is unfortunate because the bus was overloaded as the children were lapping one another, which increased the number of persons expected for such a vehicle,” he said.
He stated that the bus was carrying more passengers than expected, stressing that the vehicle was conveying 41 persons, mostly children, as opposed to the expected 18.
He cautioned against night travels, stating that “though it is their constitutional right to travel anytime, they must know that it is riskier travelling at night than during the day.”
“Those who want to escape road enforcement officers and decide to travel at night must desist from those acts while doing the right thing and prioritising their safety and those of their passengers,” he said.
Mr Kaura urged drivers to adhere to traffic rules and regulations, stressing that “life is more important than any economic or other benefit from driving.”
(NAN)