Motor boy crushed to death while stabilising truck in Lagos

The Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA) special night gang patrol team has arrested a truck driver after his motor boy was crushed to death while trying to stabilise a heavily loaded vehicle.

Olalekan Bakare-Oki, the LASTMA general manager, said the incident happened on Wednesday at about 11 pm at the Ogolonto traffic light intersection, inward of the Ikorodu roundabout.

According to Bakare-Oki, the motor boy was crushed after he alighted from the moving truck and attempted to place a wooden plank beneath its tyres to stabilise the vehicle, which reportedly had a defective brake system.

He said LASTMA officers quickly cordoned off the scene to prevent chaos and ensured the safety of other road users.

“He alighted to assist the driver in stabilising the truck by placing a wooden plank beneath its tyres, as the braking mechanism of the vehicle was reportedly defective,” he said.

“In the course of this effort, the unfortunate motor boy slipped and fell beneath the rear tyres, which ran over him, resulting in his instantaneous and tragic death.”

Bakare-Oki said the Ipakodo police division was promptly contacted and took over the investigation.

He said the truck driver was handed over to the police for further interrogation, while the deceased’s remains were conveyed to the General Hospital, Ikorodu, for proper burial arrangements.

Bakare-Oki extended condolences to the bereaved family and urged truck drivers and commercial transport operators to conduct regular mechanical inspections, especially of braking systems, to prevent such tragedies.

“Mechanical negligence and poor vehicle maintenance pose severe risks not only to operators but also to innocent road users,” he said.