Rumours of purported bomb blasts at the Garki 2 area of Abuja, the federal capital , yesterday turned to be false as combined team of the security agencies gathered at the Garki Mall to sensitise their officers and men of the need for synergy among the agencies in emergency situations.
Residents around the International Market were said to have been alarmed by the sound of a gunshot coming from the venue which they thought was a bomb blast or terrorism related.
People Daily gathered that the early sign of abnormal situation in the area was the heavy traffic build-up along the Ahmadu Bello Way beginning from the Apo Bridge as it was virtually difficult for motorists to meander their way through the road linking the Central District or the Federal Secretariat end.
Approaching the junction leading to the Garki Model Market, the combined team of the security agencies had cordoned off the road and their men stationed to prevent motorists from proceeding on the Ahmadu Bello Way towards the federal Secretariat.
However motorists driving from the opposite direction on the other lane were allowed to move through the road except for the heavy traffic at the junctions leading to the Garki Mall and the junction to the model market.
The worst hit area by the traffic congestion was the Garki International Market roads adjacent the venue of the sensitization programme as many motorists who thought they could drive through the premises of the international market discovered to their utter dismay that both the exit and the entrance gates were closed against vehicular movement.
Agencies that participated in the programme included the Nigerian Army, the Directorate of State Security (DSS), Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), the Nigeria Police Force (NPF) Nigerian Red Cross, Nigerian Fire Service, FCT Emergency Management Services, amongst others.