Kogi State Governor, Ahmed Ododo, has commiserated with the families of the Obajana accident victims.
The accident, which occurred on Sunday night, claimed the lives of 13 bus passengers and left two others injured.
The Federal Road Safety Corps, on Monday, said 13 persons died while 21 were injured in separate auto crashes in Kogi and Benue states.
The Kogi FRSC Sector Commander, Samuel Oyedeji, informed journalists in Lokoja, the state capital, that the accident in Kogi occurred around 7.30 pm on Sunday.
Oyedeji added that the accident, involving a commercial Sharon bus and an articulated cement truck, took place near Obajana Market on the Obajana-Lokoja Road in the Lokoja Local Government Area of the state.
Ododo, who received a report of the accident upon his return to Lokoja on Monday, commiserated with the families of the victims and promised that the state government would not abandon them in their moment of grief.
In a statement by his Special Adviser on Media, Ismaila Isah, and made available to newsmen in Lokoja on Tuesday, Ododo said he was disturbed by the accident which occurred when an articulated truck rammed into a passenger bus around the Obajana market late Sunday night and resulted in an inferno.
While commiserating with the families of the victims, Ododo said, “I am disturbed that this accident resulted in the loss of lives and damage to property in the area.
“I sympathise with the families of those who lost their lives and the survivors, and I promise that we shall not abandon them in their moment of grief.”
He commended emergency management services in the state for rising to the occasion and dealing with the accident’s aftermath.
The governor called on the people to avoid night travel at all times.
“Let me also commend the Federal Road Safety Commission and other agencies for their quick response, but again I want to urge Nigerians to avoid night travels and for transporters in the state to preserve passenger manifest at bus terminals to enable easy identification when there are situations like this,” the governor said.
