Eight people lost their lives on Saturday after a commercial bus struck a landmine along the Maiduguri-Damboa highway in Nigeria’s troubled Borno State, according to security officials and eyewitnesses.
The explosion occurred around 11:45 a.m. near Gidan Kaji, approximately 30 kilometers from Damboa, a region long plagued by the militant group Boko Haram. The group is known for planting explosive devices on roads and targeting both civilians and security forces in the northeastern part of the country.
Local vigilante officer Abor Kachallah confirmed the timing of the incident during a phone interview. Another traveller, Usman Idi, who was en route from Damboa, described seeing military personnel arriving in large numbers at the blast site shortly after the detonation.
“We saw the mangled remains of the vehicle. It had clearly hit one of the explosives buried by Boko Haram,” Idi said.
Borno State Governor Babagana Zulum visited victims who were rushed to the intensive care unit at a hospital in Maiduguri, the state capital. Seven people were reported to be in critical condition, while 14 others sustained minor injuries.
Governor Zulum pledged that the government would cover all medical expenses for the injured and called on security forces to ramp up efforts to make the state’s highways safer.
As of Saturday evening, police spokesperson Kenneth Daso stated that he was still collecting information regarding the blast.
Last year, a similar incident on a northeastern highway claimed the lives of at least seven soldiers.
