19 Redeemed Church members, 36 others die in auto crashes

A multiple crash on the Potiskum-Maiduguri highway, involving three vehicles, Monday, killed 35 people, including 19 church members on their way back from Lagos, where they attended a religious meeting.


“All the 19 members of Redeemed Christian Church of God, who were travelling in one bus, were burnt beyond recognition as the bus caught fire on collision with the other two vehicles which also burst into flames shortly afterward,” said Yusuf Sani, spokesman of the Federal Road Safety Commission, FRSC, in Yobe State.

“The victims in the other two vehicles were said to be returning from a wedding.” He blamed the accident on speeding.

On Sunday, 20 traders returning from a local market were killed when the open van they were travelling in collided with an articulated truck, Sani said.

He attributed the accident to “reckless overtaking.” Sixteen of the 20 victims were girls.