Panic gripped commuters along the Gusau-Funta Highway in the early hours of Wednesday in Zamfara State after a suspected Improvised Explosive Device, IED detonated on the busy route.
The explosion involved a truck driver transporting cement from Sokoto State to Kaduna State. The blast damaged the front of the trailer and brought traffic to a standstill.
Motorists were left stranded in long queues as panic spread amid reports that suspected bandits had planted the explosive device along the highway.
The incident occurred just hours after suspected bandits reportedly abducted motorists within the same axis.
Confirming the development, the Commissioner of Police in Zamfara State, Ibrahim Balarabe Maikaba, said joint police and military tactical teams including Explosive Ordnance Disposal, EOD units detected and safely detonated multiple IEDs along the Kucheri-Danjibga-Keta axis, despite coming under attack.
According to him, the operatives repelled the ambush and successfully reopened the road, restoring movement and easing the hardship faced by residents whose access to food and other essential goods had been disrupted.
Meanwhile, the cement truck driver involved in Wednesday’s explosion has been rescued alive from what could have been a deadly tragedy.
(Editor: Terverr Tyav)
