Sixteen persons were burnt to death and three others injured in an accident involving a Mazda bus in the Buhari Estate area on the Abeokuta-Sagamu Expressway on Tuesday.
The accident which occurred at about 1:00p.m, involved a Mazda bus marked KJA 949 YJ.
Spokesperson of the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) in Ogun, Mrs Florence Okpe, who confirmed the casualty figure in Abeokuta explained that the accident was caused by fire outbreak in the vehicle.
Okpe added the vehicle was also having a filled gas cylinder in it, which led to explosion.
She added that 21 people were involved in the accident, 16 died with three sustaining injuries.
The FRSC spokesperson stated further: “A total of 16 people were killed in the crash while three sustained varying degrees of injuries.
“The genders of the victims could not be ascertained at the scene because they were burnt beyond recognition.
The injured victims, Okpe said, were taken to the Federal Medical Centre, Idi Aba, Abeokuta, while the corpses were still at the scene waiting for evacuation.
“The Sector Commander, Akinwumi Fasakin, quickly moved to the crash scene with his team for rescue operation but he was not pleased with the occurrence.
“The driver should have objected to carrying a cylinder filled with gas,” she said.
Motorists were advised that highly flammable items should be transported with care and by designated vehicles driven by trained drivers only.
Okpe also urged motorists and passengers to always put safety first while on the roads.