[size=13pt]Lagos, Police Sue for Calm as False SMS Spreads Panic[/size]


A text message, which claimed that a portion of the Third Mainland Bridge was about to collapse, caused panic in Lagos yesterday as those who received the message made frantic calls to loved ones to avoid the ever busy bridge.

The Lagos State Government and the state command of the Nigeria Police, however, reacted immediately, issuing separate statements to debunk the claim and urging Lagosians to be calm.An anonymous text message had surfaced around mid-day alerting recipients to a breakdown in the middle of the bridge.

Addressed to “whom it may concern”, the message claimed that, “The middle part of the Third Mainland Bridge just had a sharp crack and is about to collapse!!! Drivers Beware!! Send it to your loved ones ASAP! Channels TV is currently showing live updates on this unfortunate occurrence.”

The message sent the state into a frenzy as recipients called loved ones and motorists started avoiding the bridge. This forced the police and officials of the state government to carry out urgent on-the-spot inspections to ascertain the condition of the bridge. After the inspections, the officials issued separate statements affirming that there was no problem at all.

Channels Television also refuted claims that it showed live feeds of the alleged breakdown. Police Public Relations Officer Frank Mba said the text message was a fraud, explaining that the prank was “highly disturbing.” He rued a situation where people deliberately spread panic by using GSMs to circulate false messages. Mba, a Superintendent of Police, said: "Our attention has been drawn to the an emerging but highly disturbing trend, whereby some unknown persons use modern communication devices such as GSM voice calls and text messages amongst others to circulate messages presumably alerting members of the public of on-going crimes (usually the violent ones) within specific locations in Lagos.

“The message or broadcast usually ends with a warning to residents and their loved ones to keep off the specified area where the alleged crime is said to be taking place.”
He said the dangers of allowing this dangerous trend to continue unchecked are unquantifiable. Mba also condemned the action of those behind the text message scare saying, “Human and material resources that ought to have been deployed by the police in tackling other problems are usually momentarily deployed in responding to these pseudo distress calls”.

Also reacting to the text message scare, the Lagos State Government assured motorists and road users plying the Third Mainland Bridge that the bridge is safe.
The state government urged Lagosians to disregard the false text message. In a statement signed by the Special Adviser to the Governor on Work and Infrastructure, Engineer Ganiyu Johnson, and his counterpart in Transportation, Hon. Kayode Opeifa, the government said there “is nothing wrong with the Third Mainland Bridge.”

The statement urged Lagos residents to go about their normal duties, with words of assurance that there is no cause for alarm. The state government said it had contacted the Federal Controller of Works in the state, Engineer E.U. Mgbemena, who had also guaranteed the safety of the bridge.
THISDAY that learnt that the trend had started since the weekend when a false text message was also sent round

http://www.thisdayonline.com/nview.php?id=179948

some people are jobless. what do they aim to gain by raising such a false alarm 

some jobless ppl are not even afraid of BABAPUPA anymore

some guys are just loonies!!!

how can sum1 do something like this!!!

joblessness,
hoaxes like this are what causes bloody riots

I've heard this before,

I blame Nigeria's planlessness more than I blame the hoaxer. In other countries, nobody sends such text messages, because they will surely get traced, tried and locked up. In Nigeria, people have even sent a text messages to threaten the lives of top govt officials and not been caught.

Lets blame our planless, dataless country. We have traditionally been ruled by rumour and brute force, dangerous text messages like the one in concern, only go to show the weaknesses of our govt systems.

wen i 1st saw d topic, i was lyk but after readin d whole rubbish, i was lyk

ai ni se lo fa!

^
Not everybody here speaks Yoruba, lets be civil. If you were talking to a specific poster it would be ok, but when you're talking to everyone, its bad.

Possibly a call out sign for reinforcement . The bridge is under daily strain and it won't be out of place for an occassional near-mishap experience to be blown out of proportion. That said, it should be investigated and not just brushed aside, me i go wear my live vest drive on top TMLB just in case

Commissioner of work and housing and road maintenance don't have money to eat that's why they sent that messages around.

(ai ni se lofa) It's d cause of joblessness!

@Beaf

i support d sendin of lyf threatenin text message to our leaders, since dey don't want to do what's right for d country!

It'll make dem get more serious or get out of d office n let som1 dat is ready to serve d nation with good heart continue!

we seem to be entering the age of prankster SMSing / communications


there was evening someone called into cool fm to say a brt bus was burning on 3rd mainland  bridge

a police officer even called in as well ( guess thats when i should have realised it was bs)

so te i even starrted a thread. next day, nothing in the papers

Vavavoom:

Possibly a call out sign for reinforcement . The bridge is under daily strain and it won't be out of place for an occassional near-mishap experience to be blown out of proportion. That said, it should be investigated and not just brushed aside, me i go wear my live vest drive on top TMLB just in case

Very Rational suggestion!

Beaf:

I blame Nigeria's planlessness more than I blame the hoaxer. In other countries, nobody sends such text messages, because they will surely get traced, tried and locked up. In Nigeria, people have even sent a text messages to threaten the lives of top govt officials and not been caught.

Lets blame our planless, dataless country. We have traditionally been ruled by rumour and brute force, dangerous text messages like the one in concern, only go to show the weaknesses of our govt systems.

Couldn't have said it better.

Beaf:

I blame Nigeria's planlessness more than I blame the hoaxer. In other countries, nobody sends such text messages, because they will surely get traced, tried and locked up. In Nigeria, people have even sent a text messages to threaten the lives of top govt officials and not been caught.

Lets blame our planless, dataless country. We have traditionally been ruled by rumour and brute force, dangerous text messages like the one in concern, only go to show the weaknesses of our govt systems.

Thank you jor

Ranoscky:

(ai ni se lofa) It's d cause of joblessness!

@Beaf

i support d sendin of lyf threatenin text message to our leaders, since dey don't want to do what's right for d country!

It'll make dem get more serious or get out of d office n let som1 dat is ready to serve d nation with good heart continue!

Looking at it that way, its difficult not to agree with you.
Perhaps, I should have used kidnappers as an example instead; they carry out their nefarious deeds and continue sending text messages for ransome money without being traced.

that was funny

yall think the text message generated from joblessness? i dont tink so. . . i have a feeling it could be part of aplan for something bigger , why would some1 waste money sending such a senseless message. . . it might be a form to distract police or something. . . think about it

^
How much does it cost to send just a text message? It was sent to som1, n dat person will also send it to his friends, n his friends will also send it to others. n it goes on lyk dat. just lyk rumour. u don't spend nohm in spradin rumour, just tell it to a friend, n b4 u know it, d rest is history, just lyk dis topic now! copy dat?

One of my buddies in Lagos receive the msg. He alert us to tune to Channel TV which we did immediately, but Channel TV was streaming another live program then. I wonder what people gain in creating panic?.

Ranoscky:

^
How much does it cost to send just a text message? It was sent to som1, n dat person will also send it to his friends, n his friends will also send it to others. n it goes on lyk dat. just lyk rumour. u don't spend nohm in spradin rumour, just tell it to a friend, n b4 u know it, d rest is history, just lyk dis topic now! copy dat?

Rumours are carried by enemies, spread by ignorance and accepted by fools.

What will unscrupulous people not do?

If we could only do something, like emmmmmmm, maybe, register sim cards to individuals, then we could trace the source of these messages.
oops! i 4got nigerians dont want sim card registration

THis is just as a result of joblessness. Since blackerrry messenger became accessible to everyone, many fools just use it to send out hoaxes and cause panic to the whole world. They should better increase the price to 20k a month and see whether these fools would have time to send around these stupid messages!!

. . . . the scheduled Third Mainland Bridge scare. . . .

odiaero:

But come to think of it, what is the bizness between police and inspecting roads

Nigeria = Head + Brick wall

papamissyb:

HAVING BEEN INFORMED BY THE GOVT CONCERNED SOURCE THAT IT WAS A FALSE ALARM, IT IS THE SOLE DUTY OF THE POLICE TO GO AHEAD AND PROVE TO THE MASSES THAT IT WAS UNTRUE, THIS WOULD GO A LONG WAY TO DOUSE DOWN THE FEAR AND TENSION CREATED BY THE FALSE ALARM. THEY ARE SADDLED WITH THE RESPONSIBILITY OF SECURITY OF LIVES AND PROPERTY IN ANY PART OF THE WORLD. WELL DONE POLICE!

what do police know about bridge engineering? is like if an Airplane engine is rumored to fail, u go and call the police to check it out, it may be ok physically, but inside the combustion chamber may be bad, so police have no bizness inspecting brigde, theirs is crime investigating

Picture of the crack . Thanks to P.M News


http://pmnewsnigeria.com/2010/08/04/cracks-on-3rd-mainland-bridge-lagos-fg-allay-fears/

5p1naz:

yall think the text message generated from joblessness? i dont tink so. . . i have a feeling it could be part of aplan for something bigger , why would some1 waste money sending such a senseless message. . .  it might be a form to distract police or something. . .  think about it

Well said.

^^guy the police are/were already distracted. They cant be distracted more. Think if it were for real they would leave their "20 naira per bus" post and begin running to do - only God knows what - to a collapsed brdge situation.

I think the jobless sender was curious. Nonetheless the govt should look into it. Like was said in the movie 2012, "when the govt says its all alright, thats when u run!"