A mechanical fault that began with a simple battery failure spiralled into a major traffic crisis on the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway Wednesday morning, after a Mack truck overturned at Otedola Bridge and deposited two 20-foot containers across the carriageway.
The incident brought movement on one of Lagos State’s busiest arterial roads to a standstill in both directions, with the resulting gridlock stretching several kilometres back to the Kara Bridge and leaving thousands of commuters stranded during the morning rush.
According to the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA), the truck initially developed a battery and mechanical fault while travelling inward Secretariat. A privately arranged recovery operation to move the vehicle went wrong when the truck overturned, sending its cargo two fully containerised boxes crashing onto the road surface and blocking all lanes
LASTMA mobilised personnel to the scene and worked to clear the obstruction. The authority later confirmed in a statement that its teams had successfully resolved the situation.
“The two containerised boxes have been successfully recovered and removed from the roadway,” the agency said. “Traffic is moving very fast. Our officers are still on the ground, managing traffic and ensuring smooth vehicular movement.”
The incident has renewed concerns about the use of private recovery crews on high-traffic corridors, where botched operations can compound initial breakdowns into far larger emergencies.
LASTMA officers remained at the scene following the clearance to manage residual congestion.
No injuries were immediately reported.
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