This is the sad story of Mr Samuel Ezechukwu, 50, a Lagos-based businessman who hails from Umueze Uga in Aguata Local Government Area of Anambra State. He was until that tragic death, the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Samchin Industrial Company Ltd. Apart from that, he was regarded as a pillar in his family and community, a reason for which his death has cast a thick pall of sorrow among his people.
Nze John Dimejesi who claims to be a relation and kinsman of Samuel told Vanguard Metro that when three weeks ago his village union launched its magazine in Lagos the deceased was the chairman of the occasion, adding: “He is a well known man in our home town and in the village”.
Continuing he said: “Samuel’s mother fell ill, so he was invited home to come and take care of her. He travelled to the village and later brought his mother to Lagos. So that morning, he was taking his mother to the church where they were going to pray for her.
But on the way, they ran into the fire. He was in his car with his mother when it happened. Initially nobody knew what had happened. It was when his wife waited for him and his mother to come back and did not see them that she started calling on relations. It was later we heard about the accident and went there. On getting there we saw the burnt bodies of Samuel and his mother in the car”.
Nze Dimejesi blamed the Federal Government for the accident, saying that if they had done something about the numerous potholes on the road, the tragedy would not have occurred.
A near death experience
It was, however, a lucky escape for another victim as he survived to tell the story. As at the time he was leaving Orlu for Onitsha, what mattered most to him was how he could get to Lagos and face the challenges of raising more money for his business.
Having raised some amount in the village, this Imo State born trader was sure he would make more money in Lagos. That explains why he was in high spirits when he left his parents, Mr. and Mrs Ohakwe. For Mr. Uchechukwu Ohakwe, it was either destination Lagos or never.
Even with the collapsed, treacherous state of the Benin-Ore road, Uchechukwu and other passengers were not discouraged as they dared to embark on that journey.
What could have passed for a four-hour journey, lasted for six hours. But that was not a source of worry to this man in his late ’20s, as he was grateful to God for a blessed journey. Upon arrival at Mazamaza Bus-stop at 4:30pm, the Iyana-Iba resident boarded a bus going to Okokomaiko, not knowing that he had a cruel date with fate.
To him, what happened that day is something he will prefer to forget in a hurry because of its tragic dimension. According to him, it could be likened to a situation where one runs into the front of a moving train.
“We were the first to get to the scene. Upon getting there, we saw the driver of the tanker and his conductor waving down upcoming vehicles. They were shouting that we should stop and not proceed with our journey.
The passengers also warned the driver not to proceed,”Uchechukwu, whose voice was faint, told this reporter amid pains.
In a tearful voice, he informed that the driver did not heed the warning, adding that he(the bus driver), tried to zoom past the tanker which was then spilling PMS on the expressway.
So how did this young man escape this encounter with death? Responding to question, Uchechukwu, whose speech was interrupted by coughing, said: “When the blast occurred, the resulting fire spread to our bus.
I was sitting at the extreme back of the bus. We were struggling to go out; there was a lot of shoving and pushing. We had to break the back windscreen to make our quick exit. On getting out of the car, we ran into the bush which is a swampy area. I was still running when the fire caught up with me, burning my back. You can see that my face and head are severely burnt”.
Continuing, he disclosed that they were rescued by men of the Nigeria Police Force, who picked them from the road side after they ran out of the bush.
Police to the rescue
“It was police men that brought me and another person here. They saw us by the roadside after we left the nearby bush we ran into,” he said, while staring at the ceiling.
Lying on the bed opposite Uchechukwu’s was a lady, who this reporter thought was his sister because of her relatively young look. Asked if she was the sister of the victim, the woman who looked composed said, “I am the mother, I have been here since Saturday.”
A mother’s aborted expectations
For Mrs Uwakwe when her son was leaving on the November 30, 2010 her joy was boundless. She was looking forward to hearing that Uchechukwu had arrived safely, just as she looked forward to hearing that he has started business with the money that was raised for him.
But these expectations have been put on hold by the fire incident of December 1, 2010.
She told VanguardMetro that the call she received that fateful Saturday afternoon, unleashed sorrow in her household.
Today, Mrs. Ohakwe’s abode is Safe Hands Hospital, Mazamaza Lagos, where her son is being treated for the severe burns he sustained.
Mrs Ohakwe, who did not betray emotions while speaking to VanguardMetro noted that she was in Imo State when the news came.
“I was at home in Orlu when his call came at 12 noon, although he didn’t tell me the severity of what happened to me. He just told me that I should come that something happened to his face. I was surprised because he came to the village on Tuesday and left on Thursday evening with night bus. He came to us because he needed money to start his business here in Lagos.
We struggled to raise N100,000 which was consumed in the inferno. I proceeded to Lagos and discovered that my son is in a terrible condition. You can see that both of his hands are burnt. His head and back are also burnt; he is naked here because of the condition,” she noted.
When asked what the condition has been since she arrived, Ohakwe, added that he always cries each time the nurses treat him everyday because of the pain which is worse on his right hand which is swollen. He is presently on to a diet of pap.
“When they brought him here, our people in Lagos had to deposit N20,000. So far we have paid N55,000. I was made to understand that the bill may get to N200,000. I am not bothered about that even though raising the fund is a big challenge to us Even if it will cost more than that, God who rescued him will provide. Even if they are calling millions, my faith in God will make a way for us.”
What the doctor said
Meanwhile, when the position of the hospital management was sought on Uchechukwu’s condition, it was gathered that he had second degree burns.
Dr Okwudili Oku, who disclosed this, said: “The situation is severe but it is not threatening. About 35 percent of his body surface was affected. So it is second degree burns. The extremities and upper region is first degree. He was fully conscious when they brought him here, just that he inhaled a lot of fuel which led to coughing and it led to internal burns.
We are presently battling with the surface burn. The fuel he inhaled made him to be coughing out carbon.” When asked if the situation might result to surgery, Oku said: “He may later need surgery but not now. And that depends on if it results to contraction during healing. Whether he will stay long depends on how he responds to treatment”.
Source:http://www.vanguardngr.com/
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