TRAGEDY IN DELTA STATE: SCHOOL BUS CRASH....2 Pupils, 2 Teachers Confirmed Dead

It was a tragic loss, penultimate Friday when an 18 Seater bus conveying students while on an excursion trip to Edo state, somersaulted with two pupils reported to have died in the unfortunate accident.

Eyewitness reports told Naij News Alert that the tragedy occurred on Friday evening around Oghara Eki in Delta state when the 18-seater bus conveying students and teachers of a school in Ovwian, Udu Local Government area of Delta state, reportedly crashed after its rear tyre burst, causing the bus to somersault severally into a stationary lorry.

According to sources, the school had gone on excursion to Benin city, Edo state in a 18-seated bus, but was allegedly over-loaded with 27 persons which included the pupils and teachers and the driver of the bus, who, according to sources, was inexperienced.

Confirming the unfortunate incident, Mrs . Eddie Hinges, Proprietress of the school who spoke with the media, said; “Some people said the bus was faulty. It is not true".

According to Hinges, "it was what was going to happen that happened. The back tyre burst which resulted to the bus to somersault and crash into stationary lorry, after which, two pupils, two teachers died".

She debunked insinuations that the driver was inexperienced, saying the driver has been the school driver right from the inception. It is rather unfortunate”.

Speaking with the media, some of the affected parents, under the condition of anonymity, said they were surprised at the urgency with which the school authorities fixed the date and directed parents to prepare their children.

"Apart from compelling them as parents to participate, the school authorities enlisted an inexperienced staff as driver to drive the bus", the parents lamented.

An obviously enraged parent told this medium that "the organizers of the event enlisted five staff, eight students of secondary school arm of the school, and fourteen pupils into the 18-seater bus en-route Benin city for the excursion".

Eyewitnesses said "the driver lost control of the vehicle and the children were flying out of the bus like birds and many of them landed unconscious on the ground, many of them sustained injuries. Two of the pupils and two teachers died on the spot".

Mr. Richard Okwuagwu, parent to the dead pupils, said; “I lost two of my kids, Daniel and Faith Okwuagwu. I did not pay for the excursion. I paid money for the cultural day, but because of greed, the school did not refund my money; they killed my children because of N10,000. I will take the school to court". 

"I will not accept the mess of losing two children one day. It’s painful”, the sorrowful father stated. 

Commissioner of Police in Delta state, Mustafa Muhammed, while responding to the media, said; “the police are investigating the ill-fated bus. We are in custody of the driver and some of the teachers. Investigation is ongoing. The aggrieved parents have petitioned the Command and we are looking into the incident”, he said.