The driver and conductor of a BRT bus reportedly fled for their lives after a BRT vehicle caught fire in the Maryland area of Lagos State on Saturday morning and left their passengers in the burning bus.
The bus was said to be heading from Ikorodu to CMS and reportedly began to emit smoke from the driver’s side before catching fire, according to reports.
According to one anonymous passenger on board, many commuters initially assumed the smoke was coming from a nearby vehicle. However, as the smoke intensified, passengers exited the bus before the flames spread.
“As soon as we saw that the smoke grew bigger, we immediately rushed off the bus before the fire ignited,” the witness said, adding that none of the passengers sustained any injury.
The witness also claimed that the driver and conductor fled the scene as the fire started, stating, “The driver and the conductor ran away. They didn’t even wait to see what would happen to us. Definitely, they knew what happened.
They knew the bus was bad before putting it on the road and risking our lives.”
As of the time of filing this report, personnel of the Nigeria Police Force and Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA) and Lagos State Fire and Rescue Service were at the scene working to contain the fire and manage traffic in the area.
