Two people — a housewife and her grandson — were killed when a truck crashed into their home in Maje, a community on the outskirts of Suleja in Niger State.
Angered by the situation of vehicle crashes along the road, youths blocked the Suleja-Minna road, lamenting the loss of lives caused by tanker crashes due to the deplorable state of the road.
An eyewitness, AMuhammad Badamasi, said the truck driver arrived in the area around 7 am from the Minna axis on his way to Kaduna when he suddenly discovered brake failure, adding that the truck rammed into the house, killing the woman and her grandson instantly, while another girl from the family sustained injuries.
Another resident, Abdulmumini Ahmad, said it was the fourth time a moving tanker had crashed into the same house due to the deplorable condition of the federal highway in the area.
During the protest, the youths lamented the lack of compensation for families of victims and owners of destroyed properties from either the government or truck owners in previous incidents, hence their decision to block the highway.
A delegation from the Niger State Government, led by the Commissioner for Transport, Abdullahi Shuaibu Maje, later persuaded the protesters to reopen the highway around 3 pm.
The victims have been buried according to Islamic rites.