Three people were killed, and several others injured, when an articulated truck carrying flour crashed into shops in Utu Etim Ekpo, the headquarters of Etim Ekpo Local Government Area, Akwa Ibom State, on Monday.
Efforts to reach the state Sector Commander of the Federal Road Safety Corps, Edward Odiete, were unsuccessful, as his phone lines were switched off at the time of this report. However, Corps Public Relations Officer John James assured he would provide an update “as soon as I reach the office.”
Local sources confirmed the incident to PUNCH Online. Gabriel Akpan, a resident, provided initial information, and Eno Umanah, a motorcycle operator, shared details, stating that the incident occurred around 8 p.m. on Monday. According to Umanah, the truck driver lost control while allegedly fleeing from bribe-seeking personnel who had set up a roadblock at Nkwot Ikot Ebo on the Iwukem–Etim Ekpo–Abak road.
“The truck, loaded with flour, was heading from the Iwukem area towards Abak. Some personnel at a roadblock tried to stop the truck, but the driver refused to pull over,” Umanah explained. “The personnel pursued him, but as the truck descended the slope towards a roundabout at high speed, the driver lost control and veered into roadside shops, resulting in the tragic fatalities.”
Locals noted that the road, constructed during Godswill Akpabio’s tenure as governor, has been the site of numerous fatal accidents. Another resident, Akaninyene Umanah, attributed the frequent accidents at this spot to “poor and irregular road alignment by the contractors.”
