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IED blast strikes Suzuki truck near Komala village in Borno
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Police confirm fatalities, hospitalise victims in Maiduguri
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Incident mirrors April attack that killed 8 on same route
At least four travellers were killed and 10 others severely injured on Wednesday after a bomb explosion along the volatile Maiduguri–Damboa Road in Borno State.
The incident, which occurred around 3:30pm at Komala village, involved a Suzuki pick-up truck that detonated an improvised explosive device (IED) planted on the highway.
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Spokesperson of the Borno State Police Command, ASP Nahum Daso, confirmed the tragedy in a statement to Punch, saying the injured victims had been rushed to the State Specialist Hospital in Maiduguri.
“I confirm that the incident happened. Four persons died and 10 sustained various degrees of injuries. They have been taken to the State Specialist Hospital in Maiduguri,” Daso said.
Travellers who narrowly escaped the blast described the scene as chaotic, with traffic grounded for hours.
“We met serious gridlock before we were able to pass,” one passenger told the newsmen.
This latest attack is strikingly similar to a previous IED detonation on April 12 along the same axis, in which eight people were killed and 11 others wounded.
That attack involved a commercial Hummer bus with registration number Jigawa MMR144, which ran over an IED allegedly planted by suspected Boko Haram insurgents at Komala village in Konduga Local Government Area.
Security authorities are now investigating the persistent recurrence of IED attacks on the high-risk Maiduguri–Damboa corridor, which remains one of the most dangerous roads in northeastern Nigeria.
