By Thompson Yamput
The Federal Government has assured that repair works on the damaged Koton-Karfe bridge on the Lokoja-Abuja road are nearing completion.
The Federal Works Commissioner in Kogi, Mr Gana Patiko, gave the assurance in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lokoja.
Patiko said that there was no cause for alarm as portrayed in the viral video on the social media on the basis that a team of engineers from the works ministry are working on the damaged portions.
The commissioner said that the damages on the Koton-Karfe bridge were caused by a feul Tanker, which fell and caught fire under it.
“The driver of the tanker was reckless, he lost control and fell under the bridge and the vehicle caught fire.
“It’s the fire that damaged part of the bridge. When our attention was drawn to it, we quickly assembled a team of engineers and sent there for the repairs.
“We are on it, and at the point of completion. We are appealing to motorists and commuters to bear with us for the inconvenience, ” he pleaded.
He said that because of the ongoing repairs, the affected lane of the road on the bridge has been closed and vehicles are being diverted to the other lane.
On some of the activities of the Ministry in Kogi, Patiko disclosed that several road construction were ongoing in the state.
These, he said, are the Chintako-Ayingba road, Loko-Okene-Benin road and
Abaji – Koton-Karfe road where two contractors are working.
“We have Crete Construction Company constructing Continous Re-enforced Concrete Pavement (CRCP) along Koton-Karfe-Abaji road, while Geld Construction Company is laying Flexible Pavement along Abaji-Koton-Karfe road.
“We have CRCP on one side of the Lokoja-Abuja road because of heavy-duty articulated vehicles coming from the southern part to the northern part of the country.
“The other side of Abuja-Lokoja road has flexibility pavement because most of the vehicles heading down south are less heavy, ” he said. NAN
