Dozens of Muslim worshippers have been killed in a crash in northern Nigeria’s Kaduna state.<\/p>\n
The victims were travelling to celebrate Eid-el-Maulud – Prophet Muhammad’s birthday – in the northern town of Saminaka.<\/p>\n
Their bus collided with an oncoming truck near the town of Lere, an organiser of the Eid celebration said.<\/p>\n
Fatal road collisions are very common in Nigeria. Both drivers and passengers have been known to flout safety measures, which are loosely enforced by the authorities.<\/p>\n
An official at the Kaduna State Emergency Management Agency put the death toll at 36 on Monday morning.<\/p>\n
However, event organiser Ahmad Dayyabu told the BBC up to 40 people had died and 31 more were being treated in hospital.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey took off from the town of Kwandare on their way to here, Saminaka. On reaching the town of Lere, their vehicle was run over by a trailer truck,” he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cFrom our investigation, there were 71 people in that ill-fated vehicle.”<\/p>\n
The bus is said to have been overloaded.<\/p>\n
More than 1,470 people died in road collisions across Nigeria in the first quarter of 2024, official statistics show<\/a>.<\/p>\n That is around 16 people per day on average.<\/p>\n The government declared Monday a public holiday in order to mark this year’s Eid-el-Maulud.<\/p>\n