The people of Bamenda in Mezam County are once more mourning another avoidable death linked to the reckless and poorly managed road construction works currently ongoing across the city. Reports reaching BaretaNews confirm that a teacher of GTHS Nkwen, identified as Mr Nji, lost his life on Saturday night after falling into an exposed culvert along SONAC Street in Bamenda.
According to local sources, the late teacher had left Veterinary Junction on his private motorbike and was heading home when tragedy struck. Witnesses say he reportedly lost control of the bike and plunged directly into a deep, uncovered culvert abandoned on the roadside without warning signs, protective barriers or lighting.
The victim is said to have violently hit his head on a stone inside the ditch. He was rushed to a nearby health facility in Bamenda for emergency treatment, but later succumbed to severe injuries sustained during the fall.
Images and amateur video footage circulating online showed the horrifying scene shortly after the incident. In one of the videos sent to local media outlets, a voice could be heard lamenting the road’s dangerous condition while pointing to the uncovered ditch. Residents at the scene accused the construction company of criminal negligence for leaving deadly traps open in densely used parts of the city without any security warning.
The death of Mr Nji has triggered widespread anger across Bamenda, especially among members of his veteran club and the educational community in Nkwen. Many residents say the ongoing roadworks across the city have become a major danger to civilians due to poor safety measures and careless execution.
BaretaNews understands that this is not the first incident linked to the controversial road construction works in the city. Just weeks ago, another bike rider reportedly fell into an exposed culvert along the Veterinary Junction-to-Ayaba Hotel stretch during the night hours. The victim survived but sustained serious injuries and was hospitalised. It was only after public outrage that the construction company reportedly placed warning bricks and danger signs around the site.
In another deadly incident recently recorded along the newly expanded Hospital Roundabout to T-junction stretch in Bamenda, an elderly man in his seventies was knocked down by an overspeeding vehicle transporting a bike rider. The elderly pedestrian later died in the hospital, while the bike rider reportedly died three days later from injuries sustained in the crash.
Citizens in Bamenda say the combination of poorly secured construction zones, absence of road signs, exposed drainage systems and reckless driving has turned several parts of the city into death corridors for unsuspecting road users.
Many local voices are now calling on both the road contractors and colonial administrators of La République to immediately enforce proper safety standards before more lives are lost in Ground Zero.
As of press time, no official statement had been released concerning the death of the GTHS Nkwen teacher along SONAC Street.
