SEVERAL passengers were injured on Monday after coaches of the Abuja–Kaduna train reportedly detached and collided near Jere station, causing panic and leaving hundreds of travellers stranded.
A social media user, Sada Malumfashi, who identified as one of the passengers on board, said the incident occurred shortly after the train departed the Jere station. Malumfashi said a loud bang was heard and the train suddenly jolted to a halt.
“We heard a loud bang and the train jolted to a stop, flinging people across. Passengers got hit and most are bleeding and severely injured,” the passenger said.
According to Malumfashi, the train remained stationary for about 30 minutes before it eventually resumed its journey toward Kubwa.
The passenger also complained that there was no immediate communication from the Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC) on the incident.
A video sighted by The ICIR showed that the incident did not involve two separate trains as some posts online claim. Instead, the front coach detached during the journey, causing the rear section of the train to ram into the detached front coach.
The exact cause of the detachment remains unclear, and it could not immediately be confirmed how many passengers were injured in the incident.
Passengers were seen in the footage moving around the tracks, while others appeared visibly shaken by the impact.
Hundreds of passengers were also left stranded following the disruption along the Abuja–Kaduna rail corridor.
As of the time of filing this report, the Nigerian Railway Corporation had yet to issue an official statement on the cause of the incident or provide details of any casualties and the extent of damage to the train.
The ICIR reports that the Abuja-Kaduna rail corridor has recorded several accidents or derailments since inception, resulting in its closures. It has also been attacked by terrorists.
Mustapha Usman is an investigative journalist with the International Centre for Investigative Reporting. You can easily reach him via: musman@icirnigeria.com. He tweets @UsmanMustapha_M