At least 20 athletes from the Kano State contingent have been confirmed dead following a devastating road accident on Saturday near the Dakatsalle Bridge in Kura Local Government Area of Kano State.
The athletes were returning from the recently concluded National Sports Festival (Gateway Games) held in Abeokuta, Ogun State, when the bus carrying 30 team members reportedly plunged off a bridge.
Chairman of the Kano State Sports Commission, Umar Fagge, confirmed the incident, revealing the extent of the tragedy.
“As I am talking to you now, we have counted 19 dead bodies,” Fagge said, adding that several others sustained varying degrees of injuries.
He further explained that the bus veered off the road and fell from the bridge, leading to the mass casualty.
A former Vice President of the Sports Writers Association of Nigeria (SWAN), Ado Salisu, also confirmed the accident and said efforts were underway to move the injured to the Kura General Hospital for treatment.
When contacted, the spokesperson for the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) in Kano, Abdullahi Labaran, confirmed the incident but said details were still emerging.
“We just received the report of the accident, so, I cannot confirm the exact number of casualties at the moment,” Labaran stated.
The tragedy has cast a dark shadow over what had been a celebratory end to the National Sports Festival, with condolences pouring in across the state and nation.
