A tire, the rim and a wheel cover.

I had an accident yesterday.
I was on the third mainland bridge, going from Victoria Island to the Adekunle exit that leads to Ebute-Metta. My daughter was in the back in her car seat so of course I was doing je-je on the road. I was just going btw 80-100 km/h and the next thing I saw, a second too late, was a hole on the road. I hit it with a bit of force and heard a big thwack! I was like, “what the heck?”...Next thing I know, the car is wobbling a bit and I realize that I have a flat tire. I tried slowing down, no way. It was going wobble wobble wobble in the meanest of way so I just put it in park. It finally shuddered to a stop.

I could not even really get off the road properly. I was on the slow lane yeah, but anyone that knows 3rd mainland can attest to the fact that there are no slow lanes. At this point, my heart was thumping. It was 6.00p.m and I was alone with my daughter on this dangerous bridge...eek! Talk about being a sitting duck!! I got down and ran to the passenger side to see assess the damage. I just glanced at it and ran back in (I was wearing 3” heels and did not feel good about standing there with that ferocious wind whipping around me). Have I ever mentioned that I have a bad case of vertigo? I hate heights with a passion. I always have this sensation that I am about to fall. And then I feel uncomfortable around large bodies of water. If there is a deep bowl of water, it’s almost impossible to get me to dip my hand in it. I was more or less facing the ocean and I was on this bridge that was vibrating at a constant frequency. Men, I felt like vomiting. My heart was still thumping. Luckily my phone battery hadn’t given out (my charger has issues) so I called my classmate (I was just coming from his Hotel). I figured that if I called my dad, it would take him a lot longer to get there. Besides, the man is pushing 70. The last thing he needs is coming to change my tire. No, there’s absolutely no-one else in my house that can do it. No brothers around and the me-guard hurt his hand recently. My classmate said he was coming so I just sat there.

Then my daughter started crying because she was tired of being in her car seat. I had to let her out and she came and crawled all over the front. I kept all my windows locked and the a/c on so that she would be comfortable and had made up my mind that absolutely nothing short of death was going to get me out of that car. My classmate called and said that he was at Falomo Bridge. “Hurry!” I thought desperately. Just then, a boy walking on the road started gesturing and asking me a question that I did not hear. I was not even interested as I was scared of him turning out to be an area boy who viewed me as his weekend meal ticket. The guy was stocky and well built (you won’t blame me). He walked off without looking back.

I was still there O!! It was SCARY because I just had my hazard lights on and no caution lights. Like I said I was not going to get down from the car. I just sat there praying that a speeding car did not come and ram into me, pushing me into the water. Luckily the barriers were there sha. There was a guy in a sky blue Camry who slowed down and then took off again. (If you are reading this, I am not angry; it’s the condition of the world that does not give us an enabling environment to be good Samaritans. I would do the exact same thing to you and not out of any malice.)

Then a cab stopped ahead of me and started reversing. “Maybe he thinks I will leave the car and go with him”. I thought. “Not a chance!” He alighted and came round to the passenger side. He looked like a kindly old man so I wound down the window.

“What is the problem” he said. I told him and he asked me if I had a spare tire. “Yes.” Okay, open the boot. I did, hoping that he would not be a monster that would steal my tools & spare tire and run. (I still would not have come out). He took what he needed, went back to get a tool that I was missing, jacked the car up, changed the tire, replaced my tools, put the bad tire in the boot and then came to tell me he was done and that I could drive off. All this time, I was still in my safe place. I wound down again, thanked him profusely. Told him that The Lord would bless him and gave him a little money which he accepted but DID NOT ask for. There are still good people in the world who are not afraid to put themselves at risk to help a fellow human being. For all he knew, it was a trap.

I then started on the journey home, less a wheel cover. Shaking but very grateful to God for sending me help and for answering my prayer.

On a final note, I would like to call on the government to please! please!! please!!! Fix the road. As much as it sounds like a plea, it is actually my right to have the road fixed. I have paid my taxes duly. You even tax my bonuses and overtime pay!! Is it too much for me to ask not to pay for repairs that wouldn’t have come about if you had done your work? If my baby and I had died, my blood would have been on your head and hands… Take that to bed with you (if you can be moved). There are holes all over that bridge.

5 things I am grateful for

• My girl and I are alive and well to tell the tale.
• I was not pushed off the bridge.
• I had my faith in mankind challenged.
• I have money for the tire repairs, purchase of a new rim and wheel cover (thank you for that surprise bonus at work).
• Ich bin nicht allein