No fewer than 37 travellers have died in two road crashes in Bauchi and Nasarawa states.
Twenty persons died in the Bauchi crash, while a family of six was among the 17 that died in the Nasarawa incident.
The Bauchi crash happened at Tirwun village, a suburb of the metropolis, along Bauchi-Maiduguri Expressway.
The victims were burnt beyond recognition while two female survivors sustained varying degrees of injuries.
The crash occurred on Sunday evening when a Hummer bus on its way to Maiduguri from Jos collided head-on with a Gulf taxi and burst into flames, eyewitnesses said.
Police spokesman DSP Ahmed Wakil said the bodies of the victims had been deposited at the mortuary of Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University Teaching Hospital (ATBUTH) while the two females were receiving treatment at the same hospital.
The Federal Roads Safety Commission (FRSC) said the Nasarawa incident happened on Saturday night in Akwanga Local Government Area of the state.
The FRSC Unit Commander in Akwanga, Assistant Corps Commander Ebere Onyegbaduo said, “We received a distress call of a ghastly accident by 7pm around Ahead Town between Akwanga and Gudi Towns.
“We rushed to the scene and found a commercial VW Sharon bus and a private Toyota Sienna bus engulfed in flames with the occupants inside the burning vehicles.
“We called for Fire Brigade, the fire was contained by 11pm and we completed the rescue by 2am.”
ACC Onyegbaduo said preliminary investigation showed that the Sharon bus was coming from Abuja and was overtaking on a hill and at a bend. It ran into the Sienna and the vehicles went up in flames leading to the death of 17 people who were burnt beyond recognition.
He said the occupants of the Sharon bus were deposited at the Akwanga General Hospital while those of the Sienna were taken to the Dalhatu Araf Specialist Hospital (DASH) in Lafia. Onyegbaduo cautioned drivers to avoid dangerous driving.
The occupants of the Sienna car have been identified as Prince Nuhu Hamman Gabdo, his wife and four children.
They were returning to Abuja after visiting their hometown Gashaka in Mambilla plateau of Sardauna Local Government Area of Taraba State.
The late Nuhu Hamman Gabdo was a staff member with Nigeria Communication Commission (NCC) in Abuja and held the traditional title of Ubandoma of Gashaka Chiefdom.
