The Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC) has suspended all train services on the Abuja-Kaduna route indefinitely following a derailment on Tuesday.
The incident occurred shortly after the train departed Abuja at 11 a.m. en route to Kaduna. While the exact cause is under investigation, NRC Managing Director Kayode Opeifa dismissed claims that the trains were in poor condition.
He confirmed that six passengers sustained minor injuries and have been treated, though the total number of passengers onboard remains unconfirmed.
A full refund of ticket fees has been initiated for all affected passengers.
The Nigeria Safety Investigation Bureau (NSIB) has launched a probe into the derailment.
A team has been dispatched to the site to collect evidence and determine the root cause.
NSIB Director General Alex Badeh Jr. expressed sympathy for those injured and pledged a transparent investigation to prevent future incidents.
The scene was described by a passenger as chaotic, with people scrambling to safety.
Dele Fashomi, seasoned journalist and communication teacher, is a holder of Master of Arts degree in Communication and Language Arts from the University of Ibadan in 1992/93.
Earlier, he had bagged a Bachelor degree from the same university in 1984, after which he proceeded to the Nigerian Institute of Journalism, Lagos, in 1990, for a postgraduate diploma in Journalism.
He had done many courses in communication, including the EU-BBC Editing Course in 2002.
Mr. Fashomi combines effectively the practice, research and teaching of communication. And to date, he has published two academic works in communication: Issues in Communication Technology and Policy (2010) and Economic and Social Issues in Advertising and PR (2013).
He had his first break in the Nigerian media in Concord Newspapers in 1990 and today, he has over two and half decades experience earned in several newspapers.
He has been part of many start-ups, such as The Republic (1987), The Comet (1999), The Anchor 2001 – 2002; Sun Newspapers (2003); Westerner newsmagazine (2005 – 2010) as Editor; National Life (2011) as Sunday Editor, and Newswatch Newspapers (2012- 2016) as Daily Editor.
Dele Fashomi is now the Publisher/Editor-in-Chief of Newstide247.com newspaper online, which he started in July 2015. He is also into biography writing, with many books in his trail, some of which he wrote alone and one he co- authored with his mentor, Mr Dare Babarinsa, entitled: Olabiyi Durojaiye – DARE TO BE DiFFERENT. He also guided and collaborated with Pa Olatunji Odusanya in writing his autobiography – AGAINST ALL ODDS. There are many other books in the works under his pen.
