By Milcah Tanimu

The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) has disclosed that the number of road accidents in the fourth quarter (Q4) of 2023 surged by 24.23% compared to the third quarter (Q3) of the same year.

According to the NBS Road Transport Data Q4 2023 Report released in Abuja, a total of 2,717 road accidents were recorded in Q4 2023, indicating a significant rise from the 2,187 accidents reported in Q3 2023.

However, on a year-on-year basis, there was a decrease of 33.12% in traffic accidents from 3,617 recorded in Q4 2022.

Disaggregation of the accidents revealed that serious cases accounted for the highest number in Q4 2023 at 1,772, followed by fatal cases at 687 and minor cases at 258.

In terms of gender distribution among fatalities, the report indicated that 1,104 males (adults and children) were killed in Q4 2023, representing 83.45% of the total 1,323 persons killed, while 219 females (adults and children) accounted for 16.55%.

Regarding injuries sustained, more males (adults and children) were injured compared to females (adults and children). In Q4 2023, 6,929 males were injured, constituting 76.01% of the total 9,116 injured persons, while 2,187 females were injured, representing 23.99%.

The total number of vehicles involved in road accidents in Q4 2023 increased to 4,195 compared to 3,371 in Q3 2023, marking a 24.44% increase.

Commercial vehicles were predominantly affected, with 2,306 incidents, followed by private vehicles at 1,025, government vehicles at 40, and no diplomatic vehicle involved in accidents.

In terms of casualties by region, the North-Central recorded the highest with 3,152, followed by the North-West with 2,500, while the South-South recorded the least with 412.