Three Feared Dead As Trailer Crushes Tricycle In Anambra
No fewer than three persons were feared dead while others were trapped when a trailer conveying a 40-foot container fell and crushed a tricycle carrying two passengers at Mgbaemene Bus Stop, near Upper Iweka, along the Onitsha–Owerri Expressway on Thursday.
It was gathered that the trailer, whose registration number had been defaced, was navigating through the bad portion of the road inward Upper Iweka when it lost balance and toppled, with the container landing on the tricycle beside it.
Eyewitnesses near the scene said the driver lost control while attempting to manoeuvre through the damaged section of the Mgbaemene axis of the road.
One eyewitness said, “The accident happened at about 6:48 a.m. Due to the large potholes that have taken over most parts of the road, tricycle operators usually use the small remaining portion of the lane. As the affected tricycles were navigating the road, the trailer was also doing the same thing.
“Before we knew what was happening, we heard a loud noise and saw that the trailer and its container had fallen on the tricycle. It trapped the passengers. Three persons have been confirmed dead, including the tricycle rider, while some others are still trapped under the container.”
Another eyewitness, a resident of the area who identified herself simply as Udoka, blamed the fatal crash on the deplorable condition of the road.
She said, “I was on the balcony of my house on the other side of the road when the trailer was heading towards the Upper Iweka axis. It got to that bad portion of the road and slowed down before it fell on the tricycles riding beside it.
“It took the intervention of passers-by, drivers, and other residents before rescue efforts began, during which the carcasses of the tricycles and some lifeless bodies were pulled out.
“Security operatives, including personnel of the Federal Road Safety Corps, had a difficult time controlling the rampaging crowd that had besieged the scene of the incident.”
The spokesperson for the Anambra State Command of the FRSC, Margaret Onabe, could not be reached for official confirmation as she did not respond to calls or messages sent to her phone.
However, our correspondent who visited the scene observed that personnel of the Rapid Response Squad had cordoned off the area while rescue efforts were ongoing.
As of the time of filing this report, at about 10:24 a.m., a crane said to have come from Asaba, Delta State, had arrived to evacuate the fallen trailer and tricycle from the road.
Incidents of road crashes involving articulated vehicles and tricycles have become frequent along the Onitsha–Owerri Expressway, particularly around the Upper Iweka and Mgbaemene areas, which are notorious for deep potholes and poor drainage.
A truck tragedy at Upper Iweka on March 15, 2025, in which six persons died after a truck lost control and rammed into tricycles and a commercial bus.
The Federal Road Safety Corps has repeatedly warned motorists, particularly truck drivers, to maintain low speed and exercise caution along the Onitsha–Owerri route.
The agency has also called on the Federal Government to expedite the rehabilitation of the expressway to avert further tragedies