{"id":25778,"date":"2025-12-28T09:47:06","date_gmt":"2025-12-28T08:47:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.funminews.com\/?p=25778"},"modified":"2025-12-28T09:47:10","modified_gmt":"2025-12-28T08:47:10","slug":"7-wedding-travellers-killed-in-gombe-crash-as-nigerias-road-safety-crisis-deepens","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.funminews.com\/index.php\/2025\/12\/28\/7-wedding-travellers-killed-in-gombe-crash-as-nigerias-road-safety-crisis-deepens\/","title":{"rendered":"7 Wedding Travellers Killed in Gombe Crash as Nigeria\u2019s Road Safety Crisis Deepens"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">GOMBE, Nigeria (FN) \u2014 Seven people traveling to a wedding were killed Saturday in a crash along the Damaturu\u2013Maiduguri highway, the latest tragedy in a country where dangerous roads, rising kidnappings and soaring airfares have pushed more Nigerians into life\u2011threatening journeys.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">The victims \u2014 aged 3 to 35 \u2014 were traveling from Lawanti village in Akko Local Government Area of Gombe State when their vehicle collided with a truck near Potiskum. They were headed to Maiduguri for a wedding ceremony.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"643\" height=\"303\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.funminews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/image-93.png?fit=643%2C303&amp;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-25781\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.funminews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/image-93.png?w=643&amp;ssl=1 643w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.funminews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/image-93.png?resize=300%2C141&amp;ssl=1 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 643px) 100vw, 643px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">Authorities identified the dead as:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li class=\"\">Gambo Abbo, 35<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"\">Umalkhairi, 18<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"\">Rabiu Abubakar, 28<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"\">Fatuma Hassan, 28<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"\">Amal Abubakar, 3<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"\">Adamu Bello, 4<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"\">Zara\u2019u Alhaji, 27<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>A village in mourning<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">The crash has devastated Lawanti village. A father who lost two daughters said the loss was \u201ctoo heavy to bear,\u201d noting that one daughter was close to completing nursing school while the other was still in secondary school. Community members described the atmosphere as \u201csilent and broken,\u201d with families burying multiple relatives before sunset.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">Gombe State Gov. Muhammadu Inuwa Yahaya called the deaths \u201ca painful and devastating loss,\u201d extending condolences to families including the District Head of Jalingo, Bello Hassan Babangida, who lost his sister and niece.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>A long history of deadly road accidents<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">Road crashes are one of Nigeria\u2019s leading causes of death, claiming thousands of lives annually. The Federal Road Safety Corps has repeatedly warned that the combination of speeding, poorly maintained vehicles, and deteriorating highways has created one of the most dangerous road networks in Africa.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">Major tragedies \u2014 from fuel tanker explosions to overloaded bus crashes \u2014 have become common, with mass casualties reported almost monthly across states such as Kaduna, Ogun, Bauchi, and Kogi.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Poor roads and failing infrastructure<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">Many Nigerian highways are riddled with deep potholes, washed\u2011out sections, collapsed shoulders, and narrow lanes that force drivers into oncoming traffic. The Damaturu\u2013Maiduguri highway, where Saturday\u2019s crash occurred, is notorious for:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li class=\"\">Long stretches of broken asphalt<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"\">Heavy truck traffic<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"\">Limited lighting<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"\">Poor emergency response access<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">Residents say the road has not seen meaningful repairs in years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Kidnappings push travelers onto even riskier routes<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">Beyond road conditions, Nigeria\u2019s highways have become hotspots for kidnappings, especially in the northwest and north\u2011central regions. Armed groups frequently block roads, abduct passengers, and demand ransoms.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">To avoid known kidnapping corridors, many travelers take longer, unfamiliar routes \u2014 often in worse condition \u2014 increasing the risk of fatal accidents.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>High airfares leave many with no choice but to travel by road<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">With domestic airfares rising sharply in recent years, many Nigerians say flying is no longer affordable. A one\u2011hour flight can cost more than a month\u2019s salary for many families, forcing millions to rely on road transport despite the dangers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">Families of the Gombe victims said the group chose to travel by road because flying to Maiduguri was \u201cfar beyond what anyone could afford.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>A tragedy that reflects a national crisis<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">Saturday\u2019s crash has renewed calls for urgent investment in Nigeria\u2019s transportation infrastructure and stronger enforcement of road safety laws. For Lawanti village, however, the focus remains on mourning \u2014 and on the seven lives lost on what should have been a joyful journey.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Seven people traveling to a wedding were killed Saturday in a crash along the Damaturu\u2013Maiduguri highway. What do you think about Traveling by road in Nigeria?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":25779,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[4,3],"tags":[3088,3087,3085,68,146],"class_list":["post-25778","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-featured","category-naija-news","tag-akko","tag-damaturu","tag-gombe-state","tag-maiduguri","tag-nigeria"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.funminews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/image-92.png?fit=474%2C389&ssl=1","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.funminews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25778","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.funminews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.funminews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.funminews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.funminews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=25778"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.funminews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25778\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":25782,"href":"https:\/\/www.funminews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25778\/revisions\/25782"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.funminews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/25779"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.funminews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=25778"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.funminews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=25778"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.funminews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=25778"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}