A gruesome road accident along the Waterloo Highway, involving two trucks has left four (4) people dead and ten (10) seriously wounded. The incident occurred during the early hours of Wednesday 8th October.
According to an eye witness Mohamed Sesay, a stationary Bedford truck with registration number AAS 958 loaded with fire wood and coal was parked at the sidewalk of Jui Junction to refill the fuel tank, with the driver and the apprentice disembarking from the truck.
He added that within two minutes another Lillian draft truck with registration number PC 1187 and another foreign plate number R4 10 UMO approached the junction at high speed. The vehicle, he said, suddenly developed mechanical failure which caused the truck to over run the stationary truck and pushed it to a distance of 30meters close to the Police Training Academy fence at Jui.
Mohamed further disclosed that after the accident the area became chaotic, as victims were crying in pain under fire wood and coal bags which fell on them while other victims found themselves underneath the trucks.
He noted that on lookers crowded the scene to identify loved ones together with few Police Personnel from the Traffic Division; as body parts of some of the victims were scattered at random and stocked in the iron of the two trucks, making it very difficult to identify the victims.
The scene of the accident is filled with the stench of blood, with flies oozing around as curious on lookers and family members of victims stood with astonishment and agony as tears flow down their faces over the nature and severity of the accident.
The area is not identified with any road safety sign or reflector.
More so, there is no Traffic Police Check point within the vicinity to control the free flow of traffic at night or during the day.
To make matters worse, the two trucks had no traffic lights or side lights and some of the victims were nakedly standing on top of the truck, a witness told this press.
Police Inspector for the Kissy District Traffic Division, Allieu Jalloh, then disclosed the names of the deceased as Mohamed Fullah, the driver; Sorie Koroma, the apprentice; Kabia and a male yet to be identified.
Those who sustained injuries are currently hospitalized.
He stressed that the Traffic Division has intensified the work in most parts of the City to cross check vehicles for road worthiness, followed by sensitization on traffic rules and road safety.
By Saidu Bah