Blast rocks Jos bridge

By TAYE OBATERU

Panic gripped residents of Golhoss village in Riyom Local Government Area of Plateau State and surroundings early yesterday following a blast under a bridge in the middle of the night.

One of the twin improvised explosive devices, apparently planted to bring down the bridge, exploded while the other was recovered and detonated by experts. However, the pillars of the bridge were badly damaged.

The explosion, which went off around 2am at the village located off the Jos-Abuja highway, was said to have thrown, communities in the area who have been under repeated attacks from unknown gunmen for some time now, into confusion.

Many were said to have jumped out of their beds and woken up families and neighbors to find out the source of the loud explosion. A source said communities in the area kept vigil till day break following the blast.

The blast was confirmed by spokesman of the Special Task Force maintaining security in the state, Capt. Salisu Mustapha, in a statement yesterday. He said members of the task force and police bomb experts discovered the yet-to-detonate explosive when they got to the scene.

According to him, there was no casualty from the blast even though the pillars of the bridge were badly damaged. He added that normalcy had returned to the village.

The statement renewed appeals to citizens to be vigilant and to report suspicious persons to security agencies.