Casualty from Abuja-Kaduna Rail Line Increases

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Eight people were yesterday confirmed killed in Monday’s attack on a Kaduna-bound train by terrorists. The number of missing persons is still unknown, but the Chief of Defence Staff, Gen. Lucky Irabor, said 29 persons were injured.

The Minister of Transport, Rotimi Amaechi, said 41 persons were receiving treatment.

There’s still some controversy over the number of passengers aboard the train, as Amaechi said there were 398 passengers on board the train, but the Kaduna State Government said 362 were validated as having boarded through the recognized turnstile based on the manifest.

Survivors narrating their ordeal said the gunmen detonated a bomb on the rail track and opened fire on the halted train. The impact of the explosive, which appeared to have been planted on the track by the left rail towards Dutse station from Rijana, affected the first coach. Newsmen observed that the train was riddled with bullet holes, with windows were shattered. The floors and walls of the coaches were blood-stained with personal effects strewn all over the floors.

President Muhammadu Buhari condemned the attack, ordering Service Chiefs to ensure the quick rescue of those abducted and to also apprehend the perpetrators. During his meeting with his Service Chiefs at the state house on Tuesday, the president condemned the incident, describing it as a “matter of grave concern”. The president directed the “immediate conclusion” of the implementation of the integrated security surveillance and monitoring solution for the Abuja-Kaduna rail line.

Amaechi, who inspected the scene of the attack, said the incident would have been averted if his ministry had gotten approval for the procurement of integrated security surveillance and monitoring solution. Speaking after inspecting the site, Amaechi said: “We don’t have all the figures of missing persons, kidnapped and those injured at the moment but the numbers we have is that there are eight casualties.

“There are 41 persons in the hospital and the total number of passengers on board is 398.”

Amaechi said the digital system, which costs about N3 billion, would have helped detect human activities around the rail track. The minister also said the damage done to the rail facility could cost over N3billion to fix, but he did not explain how he arrived at the figure.