No fewer than 40 residents have sustained varying degrees of injuries after a bus driver drove through a procession of Christians celebrating the yuletide in Tumfure axis of Gombe State.
The survivors of the age-long procession were said to be on admission in two hospitals where medical experts have been working to ensure none of the victims die hours after they were rushed in.
The leader of the procession, Shamsuddeen Kachalla, told journalists yesterday at the specialist hospital, where some injured persons were being treated, that efforts were made to flag down the vehicle to no avail.
Kachalla, a member of the Boys’ Brigade in Gombe, said, “I have confirmed that 40 persons were injured and receiving treatment – 12 in FTH and 28 here at the Specialist Hospital. This procession has been going on for years and for the first time, we are encountering such an incident.
“I don’t know what happened, whether the driver lost control, but he chose to hit the people on procession instead of the vehicles before him.”
However, the statistics have been faulted by the Gombe Police Command, stating that only 22 persons sustained injuries during the accident in the state.
The command’s spokesperson, Buhari Abdullahi, stated that no death was recorded in the incident, adding that those injured were receiving treatment at the Federal Teaching Hospital and Specialist Hospital, Gombe.
He added that the incident happened at about 2:00 p.m., when Christians from Tumfure, while on a procession escorted by a team of policemen, were on their way to the Emir’s Palace and Government House.
“Suddenly, a Sharon bus loaded with bags of rice and driven by a yet-to-be-identified person lost control and rammed into the procession. The incident led to 22 persons being injured but no loss of life,” he stated.
Abdullahi, who stated that an angry mob burned the vehicle, noted that efforts were being made by the command to arrest the driver who fled the scene.
