"The Command calls on the members of the public who their family member(s) travelled along that road and are still unable to reach them to check at the ATBU Teaching Hospital please.”
Thirteen people lost their lives, while six others are recovering from injuries sustained, after the vehicles they were travelling in had a head-on collision along Bauchi-Gombe road on Sunday afternoon.
The accident involved a Sharon bus loaded with 13 passengers and a Toyota Camry with six passengers.
According to a statement by DSP Kamal Datti Abubakar, Public Relations Officer of the Bauchi State Police Command, the 19 victims were initially rescued and rushed to the Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University Teaching Hospital.
However, 13 of them were confirmed dead on arrival at the hospital.
The statement read: “With a heavy heart, the Bauchi State Police Command regret to inform the general public that there was a fatal motor vehicles accident today, Sunday 31/03/2019 at about 1430hrs along Bauchi-Gombe road involving two vehicles, a Sharon bus loaded with 13 passengers and a Toyota Camry loaded with six (6) passengers.
“The accident occurred when the two vehicles were coming from opposite directions and on reaching a point along the road, they had a head-on collision. As a result, all the 19 passengers in the two vehicles were injured.
“The victims were then immediately moved from the scene by security agents with the assistance of good Samaritans to Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University Teaching Hospital for treatment. Unfortunately, on reaching the hospital, thirteen (13) passengers were confirmed dead by the medical doctor, while six (6) are still on admission.”
According to the Police, the names and addresses of some of the victims are not yet known and an appeal has been made to the public, whose family members travelled that route at the time and have been unreachable, to visit the hospital for confirmation.
“Up to the time of this release, names and address of some of the victims are still unknown. It is on this note, the Command calls on the members of the public who their family member(s) travelled along that road and are still unable to reach them to check at the ATBU Teaching Hospital please,” the statement added.