By Adeleye Kunle
Residents of Idi-Oro, in Lagos’ densely populated Mushin district, live in constant fear as a result of a dilapidated drain filled with refuse, which has continued to take the lives of unsuspecting passers-by.
The drain, located off Alhaji Lasisi Bus Stop in Mushin, has claimed the lives of Abosede, a 25-year-old petty trader; Tijani, a 50-year-old; and, last Friday, Mary, a 15-year-old pupil.
Surprisingly, most victims are unaware of not only the depth of the drain, but also its exact location, especially after it rains.
Erinle Moturayo Mary, 15, was a student at Ajigbeda Girls High School in Surulere. She fell into the drain on her way back from school on a Friday afternoon after a downpour.
All attempts to save her were futile, as she was discovered dead by mechanics 12 kilometers from the Idi-Oro Bus stop, where her bloated body was picked up.
An eyewitness, Okada rider Oluwasesan Bamuya, told Tracknews that he witnessed the pathetic incident.
“This is not the first time this kind of ugly incident has occurred at this bus stop,” he says. It happened two months ago and killed a family man and a young lady, though I heard they were more than two. Last month, however, I witnessed two.
He continued, giving a detailed account of how the schoolgirl died, “I overheard the traders telling the little girl to turn back when I was dropping a passenger at Idi-Oro, unaware that she was already inside the drain.”
“When I arrived to rescue her, I noticed her bag and picked it up.” Unfortunately, she had gone too far down the drain and was washed away.
“We began searching her bag for anything that could help us identify her. A lady among us who fries akara at the bus stop recognized the name on her book and confirmed that she knew the little girl.
“We learned an hour later that her body was discovered on the other side of the drain, which is Idi-Araba.”
Ayodele Davies, the Chairman of Okada Riders in Idi-Oro, also claimed that the canal had taken not one, but three lives.
“When Tijani, the 50-year-old man, was found dead in the drain, they reported to the chairman of the local government, and he came with an entourage to take pictures, and nothing has been done until this very moment,” he says.
“The government should please intervene; otherwise, more lives will be lost because the road is usually quiet at night and, as the main route that leads to the nooks and crannies of the street, strangers are usually the victims because there may be nobody to direct them properly at night.”
When newsmen went to the late Erinle Motunrayo Mary’s home at Number 13, Igbehinadun, Idi-Oro, Mr. Erin, Mary’s father, said he had nothing to say except that the government had failed his daughter.
Meanwhile, residents, angry traders, and commercial motorcyclists on the ever-busy road where the drain is located have threatened to hold a peaceful protest if the state government does not act.
They claimed that both the state and local governments had failed miserably to rebuild the drain and make it safer for the hundreds of people who pass through it every day.
“Rather, they are waiting for more people to die before fixing or closing the drain.”
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