A tragic accident has claimed the life of a 300-Level student of the Federal University, Oye-Ekiti, Promise Farotimi, after a heavy-duty truck rammed into a residential building in Aramoko-Ekiti, Ekiti West Local Government Area of the Ekiti State.
The incident, which occurred at Oke-Ila area of the town at the weekend, also left the victim’s family homeless, prompting the deceased’s father, Rufus Farotimi, to cry out for justice and urgent assistance.
Promise, 21, a student of Building Technology, was reportedly asleep when the truck crashed into their residence.
Speaking on Sunday, the distraught father described the incident as a devastating double tragedy, the loss of his son and the destruction of his home.
“My son was killed in the accident, and I am the owner of the house. Everything is gone. I have lost my child and my shelter. I don’t even have clothes anymore; what I am wearing was given to me by my younger brother,” he lamented.
According to him, the truck driver fled the scene immediately after the crash, while residents apprehended his assistant, popularly known as an “operator boy.”
Farotimi disclosed that documents recovered from the vehicle, including waybills, indicated that the truck was conveying natural gypsum and bore a company letterhead identifying the driver as Shuaibu Yusuf.
While acknowledging that law enforcement authorities promptly evacuated the remains of his son and commenced investigation, he expressed concern that the driver was still at large days after the incident.
He appealed to security agencies to intensify efforts to apprehend the fleeing suspect and urged the company linked to the truck to take responsibility for the tragedy.
The state Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), SP Abutu Sunday, said the case had been transferred to the State Traffic Section for thorough investigation.