Owode Crash: GUO sympathizes with passengers

The management of G.U.O. Transport Services Ltd, has reacted to the accident involving one of its luxury buses last week at Owode-Elede in Lagos, saying it was unfortunate and saddening.

The company said it sympathizes with the affected passengers and their relations for the inconveniences and losses suffered in the crash.

A survivor of the accident recounted that the Lagos-bound bus which departed Aba last Thursday at about 8:00 pm, hit a concrete demarcation on the road early Friday morning at Owode and ran into the nearby river resulting in the death of three passengers.

The rest of the occupants of the 59-seater vehicle survived with a few of them being rushed to hospitals for the treatment of injuries.

Reacting to the incident, the Managing Director of the transport company, Mr. Maduabuchi Okeke, expressed the company’s gratitude to the first responders at the scene, for the efficient and professional manner they handled the situation.

“Prompt response by the agencies, including the Federal Road Safety Corps {FRSC}, the Lagos State Emergency Management Agency (LASEMA), the Police, National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), and other, agencies, helped in the rescue of many of the passengers”, Okeke remarked.

The Managing Director disclosed that as soon as the company was informed of the incident, mobilised a team which joined the agencies to ensure that the injured received adequate medical attention.

“We at G.U.O. Transport wish to express our utmost sympathy and regret for the distress experienced by the passengers and their families as a result of the accident involving our luxury bus”, the Managing Director stated, appealing to them to “bear with us during this sad period.”

Okeke said it was premature to comment on the cause of the crash, preferring to rather wait for “the report and updates from investigations by the agencies.”

However, a survivor of the accident, Mr. Kenneth Aaron, who spoke to journalists said the accident may have been caused by a slippery surface.

“I entered the bus in Onitsha with four of my brothers. The bus passed through Ikorodu because of the ongoing construction on Lagos-Ibadan expressway. It seemed an accident happened in the area before which spilled diesel onto the road. By the time our bus got to the spot, it skidded, hit the culvert and plunged into the river,” Aaron said.