PHOTOS: I was given black oil instead of engine oil – Driver reacts as Lagos BRT catches fire in motion

FIJ

A Bus Rapid Transport (BRT) vehicle with plate number ‘LND-315XR’ went up in flames while in motion at Ojota, Ikorodu Road, Lagos, on Friday morning.

The bus, managed by the Lagos Metropolitan Area Transport Authority (LAMATA) and Lagos Bus Services Limited (LBSL), was headed towards Fadeyi.

When FIJ arrived at the scene of the incident, the intensity of the smoke had been doused by witnesses but its pungent smell remained. The passengers had also disembarked and left the scene.

The driver of the bus told FIJ that some of his passengers had alerted him to the smoke from behind the vehicle. He also said that he had been given black oil, instead of engine oil.

“The oil that was there is supposed to be engine oil, but I was given black oil to use for the vehicle. I also didn’t know the bus was flaming up until I passed the bridge. and left the LAMATA office,” he said.

Another person at the scene of the incident suggested that the state-owned buses were not getting service regularly.

At 9:03 am, the Lagos State Fire Service arrived. “You people are just coming after we have extinguished the fire,” one of the first responders at the scene said.

There were also police officers, officers of the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA) and those of the BRT monitoring and enforcement team.

FIJ confirmed that there were no casualties and all the passengers sought alternatives to get to their destinations.

In 2023, a BRT bus went up in flames in Alapere, Lagos. The incident involved two commercial buses and left one of the drivers dead.

THIS STORY FIRST APPEARED IN FIJ