19 people killed in five days on Mpumalanga roads
The crashes also left 51 road users with serious injuries and 24 others with light injuries.
A total of 61 crashes claimed the lives of 19 people on the roads of the province in five days, between June 29 and July 2.
The dominating factor in most fatal road crashes is dangerous overtaking. Unfortunately, innocent lives are lost due to irresponsible driving,” says Joseph Mabuza, spokesperson for the Department of Safety, Security and Liaison.
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He added that eight of the crashes that claimed lives were head-on collisions.
“In most cases, the drivers overtake on the white solid lines, on mountainous bends and where visibility is poor,” he said.
On June 29, five people were killed when a minibus taxi was involved in a side-on collision with a truck on the R42 between Delmas and Bronkhospruit. “Three passengers died on the scene and two others in hospital. The driver of the minibus taxi and a passenger sustained serious injuries and were airlifted to a hospital in Benoni. The driver of the truck and six passengers of the minibus taxi escaped with light injuries,” he said.
Another six people sustained serious injuries during a head-on collision near Matsulu turn-off on the N4 road. On June 30, three were killed during a head-on collision between two sedans on the R23 between Standerton and Perdekop near Meyersville Rail Bridge. It is alleged that one of the vehicles was overtaking when the collision happened.
Another three people were killed on Monday, July 2 when the taxi they were travelling in collided with a truck on the R555.
The accident left 10 others, including the driver of the truck, with serious injuries and was rushed to Emalahleni General Hospital.
In another accident, a minibus taxi collided head on with an SUV and left 16 people with slight to serious injuries on the Schoemanskloof road. Two of the injured were occupants of the SUV.
