Aircraft conveying Agagu’s corpse crashes in Lagos

Another tragedy struck in Lagos on Thursday morning  when a chartered aircraft  carrying the remains of  a former Governor of Ondo State, Dr. Olusegun Agagu, 20 passengers  and crew crashed  less than a minute after take-off from the local wing of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Ikeja.

The Embraer 120 aircraft with registration number SCD 361 belonging to Associated Aviation Limited,  was heading for Akure in Ondo State where dignitaries, family members, friends and associates of the former governor, had gathered for his final burial ceremonies. Agagu died  on September 13 in Lagos.

Although the  metal casket  bearing his body was recovered intact, 13 out of the 20 passengers aboard the flight were confirmed dead by the management of the AAL.

Others, who survived the crash, were rushed to the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital, Ikeja and the nearby Nigerian Air Force Hospital  for treatment.

Feyi, Agagu’s son, who was speculated to have died in the crash, was one of the survivors. But, Deji Falae, the Ondo State Commissioner for Tourism and son of  a former Secretary to the Government of the Federation,  Mr. Olu Falae,  was not as lucky.

A handwritten  manifest released by Associated Aviation Limited  contained only 17 names, even though the airline said 20 passengers were on board. Those named as passengers were Femi Akinsanya,  Akintunde  Joseph,  Akeem Akintunde, Tunji Okusanya,  Chijioke Duru, Kingsley Amaechi,    E O Alabi,  Daji Bernard,  Samson Hassan, Olatunji Okunsanya and Deji Afolabi.

The manifest  listed Soroh Elaiye, Felix Fateye, Yakubu Oyinlola, and Owolabi  Ibrahim  as the crew members  of the   23-year-old aircraft which last flew on August 30, 2013.

August 30, 2013, while the age of the aircraft was 23 years.

The airline said, “We can account for seven survivors, while the remaining 13 people were dead.”  Mr. Tunji Okusanya, owner of Nigeria’s most popular coffin marketer /maker,   MIC Funeral Company;  his  son, Olatunji,  and Duru  were said to be among those that were killed in the crash.

Thursday’s crash happened 16 months after that of an MD 83 aircraft belonging to Dana Airline occurred in the Iju-Ishaga area of Lagos, claiming 159 lives on June 3, 2012.

 Agagu’s recovered  casket

The casket was  recovered by rescue agencies at the tank farm of Sahara Group, where the plane marked 5NBJY, crashed.It  was conveyed in an NAF Ambulance with registration no AF 054 -Eo1 to the  NAF hospital, a few minutes after 12 noon.

The plane broke into two with its cockpit compartment seriously burnt, while the remaining part that included the luggage compartment where the casket was,    was slightly burnt.

The remains of the former University of Ibadan lecturer were due to be interred in Ondo State this weekend after a series of events by the state government.

 Plane lost engine after take-off

Aviation sources said the plane  lost an engine immediately after take-off.

One of the sources, who confided in The PUNCH, said the pilot tried to return to the airport   when  the aircraft crashed about 800 metres away from the airport.

 Rescue Operation

All relevant security and emergency agencies  comprising  the Lagos State Emergency Management Agency, the  Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps,    the Police, Federal Road Safety Corps, Red Cross and the Lagos State Fire Services, were present at the crash site.

Others included the Nigerian Air Force personnel and officials of the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority.

The LASEMA  General Manager,   Mr. Rasaq Fadipe, who was one of the top government officials at the scene of the crash,   said  the agency received a distress call around 9.30am and immediately  mobilised   men and equipment to the site.

“We took three fire fighting trucks,each with 10,000 litres of water, which my men used to extinguish the fire that affected the cockpit compartment of the aircraft,’’ he said.

PUNCH