By Sabiu Abdullahi
The Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) reported that 411 Nigerians died in 2024 while attempting to scoop fuel from fallen tankers across the country.
This was disclosed by the FRSC Corps Marshal, Malam Shehu Mohammed, during a press briefing on the Corps’ 2024 special patrol operations in Abuja.
According to Mohammed, the FRSC recorded significant improvements in road safety compliance in 2024, with a 26% increase in adherence to traffic rules and a 23.5% reduction in traffic law violations compared to 2023.
He noted that 21,580 traffic offenders were arrested in 2024, a sharp drop from the 29,220 recorded in the previous year.
Discussing road traffic crashes (RTCs), Mohammed stated that the Corps documented 9,570 RTCs in 2024, a 10% decrease from the 10,617 incidents recorded in 2023.
He added that injuries from these crashes also slightly decreased, with 31,154 people injured in 2024 compared to 31,874 in 2023, representing a 2% reduction.
However, the FRSC Corps Marshal revealed a 7% rise in fatalities, with 5,421 deaths recorded in 2024, up from 5,081 in 2023.
Of these fatalities, 411 were linked to fuel scooping, which accounted for 7.6% of total deaths.
Mohammed described the practice of scooping fuel as “the very monster the Corps is fighting,” and emphasized that without these incidents, the fatality figure for 2024 would have stood at 5,010.
The FRSC continues to advocate for strict compliance with traffic laws and urges Nigerians to avoid the dangerous act of scooping fuel from crashed tankers to prevent further loss of lives.