Hussaini Kafi in Kano
As Kano mourns the heartbreaking loss of 22 athletes who died in a tragic road crash while returning from the National Sports Festival in Abeokuta, chilling accounts from survivors have begun to surface.
The accident occurred on Saturday at Gadar Yankifi in Garun Mallam Local Government Area, leaving families devastated and the entire state in mourning.
Some of the survivors, now receiving treatment at Murtala Mohammed Hospital, spoke to AHR about the horrific experience. Though still in physical and emotional pain, they are slowly piecing together what happened during the journey.
Nazifi Abubakar, a wrestler with the Kano team, said they left Abeokuta on Thursday, spent the night in Akure, and encountered mechanical issues in Obajana. “The bus was repaired and we continued. We dropped three athletes along the way—in Abuja, Kaduna, and Zaria—before heading toward Kano,” he explained.
He noted that the trip was mostly uneventful until they reached the Gadar Yankifi bridge. “The driver tried to avoid a broken-down vehicle on the bridge but hit a deep pothole. That’s when we lost control. I blacked out and only woke up in the hospital.”
Abubakar, who was surrounded by family members, expressed gratitude to Allah for sparing his life, despite sustaining injuries.
Another survivor, Joshua Adewebi, said he was asleep at the time of the accident due to fatigue. “I told my seatmate I’d sleep for just 15 minutes. The next thing I knew, I was in the hospital,” he said.
Adewebi, who suffered minor injuries, described his survival as a miracle. He praised the hospital staff and also appreciated AHR for providing emotional and psychological support to survivors and bereaved families.
Dorothy Okwuzuluike, the only female athlete in the vehicle, said the last thing she remembered was the bus’s brake failing. “I heard a loud noise like metal scraping. I held the front seat tightly as the vehicle skidded. Then I lost consciousness.”
Their testimonies paint a haunting picture of a journey that should have ended in celebration—but instead became a symbol of grief, systemic failure, and a call for urgent reform in transportation safety.
