Citing the deaths of 16 passengers in the late hours of Tuesday in Enugu, Enugu State, the state command of the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) has issued a warning to motorists against traveling at night.

Sokunbi Adeyemi, the Sector Commander of the FRSC in Enugu State, issued the advice in a phone call with the press on Wednesday.

According to a news report on Wednesday, 14 male and two female adults were killed when their vehicle crashed into a fence and caught fire on the Enugu/Opi/Nsukka Road late Tuesday.

Daniel Ndukwe, Enugu State Police Public Relations Officer, confirmed the tragedy, stating that an 18-seater bus with a Bauchi number plate, DAS 215 XA, smashed into Maduka University’s fence and burst into flames.

Our correspondent learned that the severity of the crash and the intensity of the fire caused the deaths of 16 passengers, while two others were rescued.

Ndukwe stated that further inquiry indicated that the vehicle was speeding before losing control and colliding with the fence.

The PPRO added that the additional inquiry indicated that the car was travelling towards Nsukka from the Enugu axis of the road, but the point of take-off and eventual destination of the vehicle could not be determined at the time of the accident.

In a chat with our correspondent on Wednesday, Adeyemi revealed that the victims were on their way from Uyo, Akwa Ibom State, to Abuja and Nasarawa when the disaster occurred.

He also stated that the families of the victims had been notified of the rescue of the bodies, while warning tourists to avoid night travel, especially if they are unfamiliar with the region.

“We were able to ascertain that they (the late travellers) were travelling from Uyo and heading to Abuja and Nasarawa. From the manifest, we have reached out to their families to inform them about the incident.

“The FRSC is urging travellers, especially drivers, to avoid speeding, particularly when they are travelling in terrain they are not familiar with. It is important that drivers avoid night travel, which can cause fatigue and lead to such unfortunate incidents,” Adeyemi concluded.