Mansur Muhammad, the father of five children who died after a water tanker rammed into a tricycle conveying them to school in Gombe metropolis, has recounted the heartbreaking moments before the tragedy.
The accident occurred on Tuesday morning near Kanady Academy, along APC Square in the Government Reserved Area (GRA) of Gombe State.
The deceased were identified as Maryam Mansir Adamu and Usman Mansir Adamu, both Primary Five pupils of Jekadafari Primary School; Hauwau Mansir Adamu of Government Junior Secondary School, Jekadafari; Aliyu Mansir Adamu of Government Day Secondary School, Ahmadu Gombe; and Fatima Mansir Adamu, whose school was not specified.
Three other children sustained injuries in the crash and were taken to the hospital for treatment.
Speaking after the incident, Mansur said he received a telephone call about 40 minutes after his children left home for school, informing him that they had been involved in an accident.
He said the caller directed him to the emergency unit of the Federal Teaching Hospital, Gombe, where some of the injured children had been taken.
According to him, he found two of his children alive upon arriving at the hospital but could not locate the other five.
He later learnt that the bodies of the deceased children had been taken to the Specialist Hospital, Gombe.
Mansur explained that one of the children had provided his telephone number to the person who contacted him about the accident.
Recounting the moment he discovered the bodies, the distraught father said he rushed between hospitals, hoping to find all his children alive.
“The tricycle rider told me that the other children were at the Specialist Hospital. When I got there, I was directed to the mortuary, where I saw the bodies of my five children laid out in a row,” he said.
He described the experience as unbearable, adding that he was the only person permitted to see the bodies because his wives were considered too traumatised to be taken to the mortuary.
The father disclosed that he had been unwell and running a fever on Tuesday morning, preventing him from taking the children to school himself.
He said his junior wife, who is the mother of three of the deceased children, subsequently contacted a tricycle rider to convey them to school.
Mansur recalled that the children had left home in high spirits, repeatedly telling him they were going to school.
“The children had left home in good spirits, repeatedly telling me, ‘Abba, we are going to school.’ I kept responding, ‘May Allah grant you success.’ I never knew that was going to be the last time I would see them,” he said.
He also recalled his final conversation with Usman, who had complained that he did not have a pen to take to school.
Mansur said he declined to buy the boy an expensive pen because he frequently misplaced them, instead giving him money to purchase a cheaper one.
“Usman said, ‘Abba, thank you.’ I did not know that I would never see him again,” he added.
The father said the news of the accident nearly made him lose his breath, explaining that he was still struggling to come to terms with losing five children in a single incident.
Mansur, who has 12 children from two wives, said only seven remained following the tragedy.
“Allah gave them to me, and He has taken them back. I am trying to accept it as a trial from Him,” he said.
He added that the children sustained severe head injuries in the crash.
FRSC Confirms Accident
The Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) Sector Commander in Gombe State, Samson Kaura, confirmed the incident, saying personnel arrived at the scene after the initial rescue operation.
Kaura said FRSC officials subsequently visited the hospital to ascertain the number of casualties.
A source at the Specialist Hospital, Gombe, said the injured children and the drivers involved in the accident were taken to the Federal Teaching Hospital, Gombe, for medical attention.
The bodies of the five deceased children were deposited at the mortuary.
One of the surviving children, Umar Mansur, an SS1 student, said the tricycle was conveying them to school when it fell, after which the water tanker ran over them.
Umar, who sustained an injury to his leg, said five of his siblings died in the accident.
Governor Mourns Victims
Gombe State Governor, Muhammadu Inuwa Yahaya, expressed sadness over the incident, describing the loss of five children from one family as devastating.
In a statement issued by his Director-General of Press Affairs, Ismaila Uba Misilli, the governor extended his condolences to the bereaved family and the Jekadafari community.
He also prayed for the speedy recovery of the three injured children.
Yahaya urged motorists to obey traffic regulations, maintain safe speeds, avoid dangerous manoeuvres and ensure their vehicles were roadworthy.
He further called on drivers to exercise extra caution when transporting schoolchildren.
The governor prayed that Allah would grant the deceased Aljannatul Firdaus and give their family the strength to bear the loss.
Meanwhile, relatives and sympathisers gathered at the family’s residence in Jekadafari to offer condolences following the tragedy.
