Nine people were burnt beyond recognition while eight others sustained varying degrees of injuries in a road crash near Zangoro village along the Bauchi-Maiduguri Federal Highway.
The Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) confirmed the incident in a First Information Report issued on Tuesday by the Bauchi Sector Command.
According to the report, the crash occurred at about 11:20 p.m. on Monday and was reported to the FRSC five minutes later.
Senior Road Marshal Assistant Suleiman Adamu Toro said FRSC personnel arrived at the scene at about 11:40 p.m., recording a response time of 15 minutes.
He said the crash involved a commercial Toyota bus with registration number DRZ 133 LG and a MAN diesel tipper transporting sand that had no registration number.
Toro said 17 male adults were involved in the crash. Nine were confirmed dead after being burnt beyond recognition, while eight others sustained injuries.
He identified a tyre burst while the commercial bus was in motion as the probable cause of the crash.
According to Toro, the damaged vehicles and other items recovered from the scene were handed over to the Motor Traffic Division of the Bauchi State Police Command for further investigation.
He added that FRSC personnel worked to establish the identities of the victims, who were identified on Tuesday.
The injured victims were taken to the Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University Teaching Hospital, Bauchi, for treatment, while the bodies of those who died were deposited in the hospital morgue.
