Police to investigate N17 accident
Three confirmed dead, nine injured in taxi accident.
Three people were killed and nine others were injured on Friday morning after the minibus taxi in which they were travelling overturned on the N17 west highway.
It is alleged that a blow-out caused the accident, which happened between Osborn Road in Wadeville and Rondebult Road in Boksburg at about 9.54am.
“When Ekurhuleni Disaster and Emergency Management Services (DEMS) rescue teams arrived, they found that the minibus was standing across the eastern bound side of the highway, obstructing three lanes of traffic,” said William Ntladi, media liaison officer for DEMS.
“Some of the patients were lying across the road and two lifeless bodies were lying a couple of metres away from each other.
“A third patient was declared dead on scene after the paramedics attempted resuscitation.
“The deceased were all males.”
Two of the injured commuters were in critical conditions and another patient was airlifted to Chris Hani Baragwaneth Hospital for further medical care.
The rest of the patients were transported to different hospitals within Ekurhuleni for medical care.
“Apparently the vehicle was travelling west from Springs heading for Johannesburg.
“It rolled several times across the road island and ended up landing on the east bound side.
“Both directions of the N17 highway were temporarily closed as a result of the accident,” said Ntladi.
Netcare Limited media liaison Chris Botha explained that Netcare 911 paramedics and other services arrived on scene to find the roadway littered with accident debris and the twisted frame of the vehicle.
“The commuters were ejected from the vehicle as it tumbled down the roadway and were spread over a large area,” said Botha.
The GCN were on scene where they witnessed the heartache of a father who found out his 21-year-old son was one of the victims killed in the accident.
The man broke down on the side on the N17 as his son’s body was loaded into the back of a mortuary van.
Kobeli Mokheseng, the media liaison officer for the EMPD said that a case of culpable homicide had been opened at the Elsburg Police Station for investigation.
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