The Private Sector Participation, PSP, waste compactor truck which plunged into the lagoon on the 3rd Mainland Bridge inward Iyana Oworo in Lagos, last week Tuesday has been successfully retrieved in an operation coordinated by the Lagos State Emergency Management Agency, LASEMA.
Tagged Operation “Catch the Shark”, the retrieval of the truck started at two o’clock in the afternoon and lasted for about two and a half hours.
Speaking to newsmen, the Permanent Secretary LASEMA, Dr Femi Oke-Osanyintolu, explained that the two occupants of the PSP truck were rescued on the day of the incident and had since been discharged from the hospital.
Dr Oke-Osanyintolu noted that the retrieval of the truck had further demonstrated the synergy between first responders in the state, as LASEMA used its heavy duty equipment on land while the State Waterways Authority, LASWA, was in the Lagoon, with support from the Lagos Fire Service, LASTMA, Nigeria Police and the Federal Road Safety Corps, FRSC.
Apologizing for all inconveniences caused while the operation lasted, Dr Oke-Osanyintolu warned members of the public to always allow emergency responders to rescue victims promptly instead of taking pictures and videos for the social media during accidents.
“The process ran smoothly and safely,
We regret any inconvenience caused to motorists by the operation and assure Lagosians of our commitment to the safety of their lives and property. However, I must advice Lagosians that they need to be very careful, they need to allow emergency responders to work, they should not, if they don’t have the capacity, they should not go to emergency scenes, they should leave rescue operations to the professionals”
“No life was lost when the accident occured because of the swift and effective response from the Agency’s marine divers who rescued the two occupants of the waste compactor after it veered off the bridge as a result of a burst tyre” Dr Oke-Osanyintolu stated.
On his part, the General Manager of the State Waterways Authority, LASWA, Mr Damilola Emmanuel, reassured Lagos residents that with the investment in security and safety by the Sanwo-Olu’s administration, all emergency responders, including LASWA had been equipped to carry out their duties effectively.
Despite sensitisation of residents on all media platforms on the closure of the 3rd Mainland Bridge for few hours for the scheduled retrieval of the waste disposal truck from the lagoon since last week Thursday, some motorists were still trapped on the Bridge while the operation lasted and some of them besieged the recovery scene blaming government officials for delaying them.
They were however pacified by the LASEMA PS, as well as the Commissioner for Transportation, Dr Frederic Oladeinde and his Physical Planning Counterpart, Tayo Bamgbose-Martins, who were also on ground to oversee the retrieval of the truck.
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