Truck crushes two poly students to death days to graduation

Two female students of the Akwa Ibom State Polytechnic, Ikot Osurua, in Ikot Ekpene Local Government Area of the state were on Monday, crushed to death by a truck two days before completing their Ordinary National Diploma (OND) programme in the school.

Eyewitnesses say the driver of the truck lost control a few meters from the institution along the ever busy Ikot Ekpene-Aba Road where the school is located and rammed into the girls, killing them on the spot.

A fellow student who witnessed the accident, said the deceased identified as Abasifreke Okon and Irene Edwin hailed from Ikot Abasi and Ibesikpo Asutan Local Government Areas respectively, and were preparing for their practical examinations scheduled to hold on Wednesday.

“The deceased were both ND 2 Science Laboratory Technology students. They were as besties and inseparable, and were supposed to have completed their academic programme after their exams on Wednesday,” the fellow student said.

The Akwa Ibom State Sector Commander of the Federal Road Safety Corps, Matthew Olonisaye, attributed the accident to reckless driving and non-adherence to the rules guiding road usage.

“It (accident) actually happened; it’s because of loss of control by the driver. We advise drivers to abide by the rules that guide the usage of the road. They should not be in a hurry.

“Drivers should also make vehicle maintenance a priority because any life lost cannot come back. Accident does not just happen, it is caused.

“I commiserate with the families of those who lost their lives,” Olonisaye said.

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