Five dead after accident in Schoemanskloof

Five people were killed and four others injured when a Toyota sedan and a Volkswagen hatchback collided this afternoon on the Schoemanskloof Road, near Poplar Creek.

ER24 and other services arrived on the scene at 13:50 to find two wrecked light-motor vehicles in the middle of the road.

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According to the communications officer of ER24, Russel Meiring, medics found two adults lying trapped inside the one vehicle while three other adults were lying a few metres away.

A boy, believed to be 11 months old and a girl believed to be three years old were found a few metres away from the car. Two adults from the second car were seen walking around the scene by the medics.

Medics assessed the victims and found that the five adults from the first vehicle had all sustained fatal injuries. They were declared dead at the scene.

The boy was found to be in a critical condition, while the girl and two adults from the second car sustained only minor injuries.

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Medics treated the patients and provided the boy with advanced life support interventions. Once treated, the patients were rushed to hospitals in Mbombela.

It is believed that the crash happened when the driver of one vehicle lost control, veered into the oncoming traffic and crashed into the side of the vehicle that was coming from the opposite direction.

Mpumalanga MEC for community safety, security and liaison, Vusi Shongwe, has reminded motorists to use the roads cautiously as some people are expected to return to work or home after a Christmas long weekend.

The details surrounding this incident are unknown, but local authorities were on the scene for further investigations.