Ogun State Governor, Prince Dapo Abiodun has barred drivers of tankers and other articulated vehicles from plying overhead bridges in the State, as he also announced strict penalties will be put in place to punish violators.
The governor made this known on Tuesday during an on-the-spot assessment of the tanker explosion that occurred in Kuto, Abeokuta, when a tanker loaded with Premium Motor Spirits popularly known as petrol lost control, as a result of brake failure, leaving three people dead, six injured and seven vehicles burnt.
Six motorcycles were equally consumed by the ensuing inferno.
He said, ‘’We will put in place a very strict penalty for any tanker driver caught on any of these bridges. This is one of the measures that the Ministry of Transportation will be rolling out in the next few days.’’
Abiodun who noted that his administration would also ensure that tankers and other articulated vehicles were road worthy, added that the state transport team would embark on an exercise to ensure that all articulated vehicles had all adequate safety equipment, as well as ensure that their vehicles were properly maintained.
“We are also going to put measures in place to reduce or almost eliminate such occurrence, part of these among others, will include that tanker drivers do not drive on our overhead bridges anymore”, he added.
Governor Abiodun commended the efforts of the transport team, comprising the Fire Service, Traffic team and others, for their prompt response, which he said helped in reducing the spread of the fire.
The Governor after visiting the scene of the fire incident went to the State Hospital, Ijaye and the Federal Medical Centre, Idi-Aba, Abeokuta, where the six victims who suffered varying degrees of burns were admitted for treatment.
