Expatriate, others trapped as vehicle escaping kidnappers plunges into river

PUNCH

A Hilux van carrying two company workers, including a foreign national, plunged into the Okulu River on Monday night while fleeing from suspected kidnappers along the Eleme section of the East-West Road in Rivers State.

Eyewitnesses said the driver lost control of the vehicle after armed hoodlums attacked the convoy, causing it to skid off the bridge and crash into the river.

By Tuesday afternoon, the van and its occupants were still trapped, as rescue efforts continued.

The Chairman of Eleme Local Government Area, Brian Gokpa, mobilised a rescue team to the scene on Tuesday, enlisting the support of operatives from the Nigerian Navy and other rescue agencies to retrieve the vehicle and its occupants…