If not for providence, a five-year-old girl, identified as Modupe, would have been crushed at Orawunmi Street, Orile Iganmu, Lagos, when a driver lost control and almost ran into her.
A baked beans seller, who identified herself as Mama Ngozi, also narrowly escaped death in the incident.
An eyewitness, Adebayo Oladele, disclosed that little Modupe was playing innocently on the road, when she strayed carelessly in front of a moving Toyota Camry LE car.
The driver of the vehicle was said to have swerved the car to the left to avoid hitting the minor.
Unfortunately, the driver rammed his car into the pot of baked beans on fire before hitting a parked Volkswagen LT bus.
Gripped by fear, Modupe was said to have collapsed and fainted. But the driver rushed her to a private hospital in the area.
The driver tried very well; if not, he would have killed the girl. People shouted as the driver applied the brakes and turned his steering to another direction, hitting a parked bus and throwing away Mama Ngozi’s akara
Oladele said, “The driver tried very well; if not, he would have killed the girl. People shouted as the driver applied the brake and turned his steering to another direction, hitting a parked bus and throwing away Mama Ngozi’s akara. Modupe’s mother is very careless. She allowed the child to play on the road, when she’s aware that the road is always very busy.”
Mama Ngozi thanked her God for saving her life because she was standing exactly where the vehicle rammed into her ‘akara’ pot and the stationary bus.
“I was here frying akara and yam, when this vehicle suddenly moved towards my side and threw away the whole akara and yam. I thank God the vehicle did not hit me. What is money? God also saved that small girl. The driver is a good driver and good person also. He tried very hard not to allow the vehicle hit the girl. People screamed, including me, as the child ran towards the moving car. It is carelessness on the part of the mother, who was supposed to take good care of her child. Supposing the vehicle killed the girl now, we all would have been crying. I thank God so much for what He did for us today. I will go and do thanksgiving in our church next Sunday. As for what I lost, my akara and ya, I have not calculated that. The driver rushed the girl to a private hospital because she collapsed out of fear,” she said.
Another eyewitness, who identified herself simply as Bimpe, said, “We thank God for saving the life of this girl, because if it were to be some other driver, he would have crushed the little girl. He managed not to hurt the girl, but out of fear, she fainted. The good driver also rushed the girl to a hospital, leaving his car at the scene of the accident. You can see that the bumper of his car was damaged and his light. God will bless that driver. He is such a good man. What can I say than to pray for him?
“I don’t know whether Mama Ngozi will collect money for his akara and yam that the car threw away. God also saved her because she was at that spot frying her yam, while even backing the road. She just left there about a meter away, when the accident occurred. The driver was not on top speed. This is a street. I blame the mother of the girl for this accident. How could she have abandoned her daughter to play on the road? It is not only her. Many children are fond of playing on the road and instead of their parents to caution them, they would look the other way. This is a good warning to fathers and mothers in this area.”
Matthew Dike, Ajegunle, Lagos.
