A guy who survived a terrorist attack on an Abuja-Kaduna train has described the horrific experiences he and other passengers had during the tragedy on Monday night.
This comes as Chinelo, a woman who said she was shot during the incident, is said to be dead.
“We heard a huge blast” while in transit, the passenger, who survived the incident, informed media over the phone. “A bomb went off.”
“The earth trembled, and within the twinkle of an eye, there were gunfire everywhere,” he said.
When the train derailed, he added, nearly a thousand passengers tumbled on top of each other.
“The terrorists surrounded the coaches and shot sporadically.
“Many were wounded. Some were hit by bullets as the terrorists closed in, trying to infiltrate the coaches.
“As the confusion heightened, many ran into the bushes on both sides of the track. It was by the will of Allah that I survived,” he said.
Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC) has suspended its operation on the route following the attack.
Kaduna Govt Reacts
The Kaduna State Government said on Tuesday that the “evacuation of passengers on the trapped Kaduna-bound train from Abuja has been concluded this morning by security forces, officials of Kaduna State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA) and Nigerian Red Cross.”
Samuel Aruwan , the Commissioner, Ministry of Internal Security and Home Affairs, Kaduna State, issued on statement, explaining that “passengers who sustained injuries, and other fatalities, have been moved to hospitals.”
According to him,”passengers were evacuated from different hard-to-reach areas in forests and rocky locations in Audujongom, off the Kaduna-Abuja Road.”
“As stated yesterday, the Kaduna State Government is still liaising with the Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC) to ascertain the list from the passengers manifest for efficient tracking.”
“Governor Nasir El-Rufai who commended all those who participated in the evacuation, appealed to the hospitals to attend to the victims diligently.”
“The Governor also directed the Ministry of Health to be in contact with the hospitals as government will bear the cost of their treatment.”As of the time of this update, search-and-rescue operations are in progress.”
