Tragedy struck in Okete, a community in the Ohimini Local Government Area of Benue State, Thursday when a truck crashed into a residential building, killing nine members of a family.

Sources said the incident occurred around 5 am when the family was still asleep.

It was gathered that the truck suffered a brake failure, which caused the driver to lose control, leading to the collision with the house situated along the roadside.

An eyewitness said, “The incident happened early this morning when most people were still in bed. The loud noise from the crash woke up the neighbours.”

The Benue State Police Command confirmed the incident.

The command’s spokesperson, Catherine Anene, said, “The truck rammed into a residential building, killing nine members of the family. The unfortunate incident occurred in the early hours of Thursday.”

She added that the police had commenced a full investigation into the circumstances surrounding the crash and assured the public that further details would be provided in due course.