Road accident kills 5 in northern Nigeria

At least five people lost their lives and five others injured in a weekend road accident in northern Nigeria's Zamfara, authorities of the Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC) said Saturday. Muktar Fago, unit commander of the FRSC in charge of the zone, told reporters in Gusau, the state capital, that the accident involved an 10-seater Sharon bus at Tudun-Gara village near Kaura Namoda area of the state. Fago said the accident was caused by burst tyre and over speeding which made the driver to lose control and skid off the road into the bush. Three persons died on the spot while two others died when FRSC officials were sending them to the hospital, he added. Five passengers who sustained various degrees of injuries were taken to Gusau General Hospital for treatment. The road official said all those involved in the accident were Islamic scholars traveling to Niamey in Niger Republic for the Annual International Preaching in the country. Poor road condition, over-speeding, over-loading and reckless driving are the main causes of frequent road accidents in the west African country.