SAD! Truck Crushes 12 School Pupils To Death In Gombe

At least 12 children were killed when a pickup van ran into a procession of students marking the birthday of Prophet Muhammad in a town in Gombe state yesterday.

The incident happened in Malam Sidi town 20 kilometres away from Gombe, the state capital.

According to Daily Trust, an eye witness, who craved for anonymity, said the driver was coming from Gombe on a high speed when he lost control and ran into the Maulud procession, an event which was staged by hundreds of Islamiya School pupils, some of whom came from neighbouring villages.

The eye witness claimed that about 20 corpses were scattered all over, adding that over 30 children were injured and taken to the Cottage Hospital in Malam Sidi.

He added that an angry mob killed the driver and set the vehicle ablaze before police arrived the scene.

Confirming the incident, the Gombe State Command Public Relations Officer, DSP Ahmed Usamn, said the accident occurred at 12 noon when a driver travelling alone in his car from Gombe to Bajoga lost control and ran into the children procession.

DSP Usman said eight were confirmed dead and 19 others were evacuated by the police medical team to Federal Teaching Hospital and Gombe Specialists Hospital for treatment. He noted that the police had launched an investigation into the incident and that they were also on the trail of those that killed the driver and burnt the car.