The driver of the devasting gas tanker explosion in Plantation on December 24 will appear in Boksburg Magistrate’s Court on December 28.
The 32-year-old suspect has been charged with multiple counts of culpable homicide, negligent causing of an explosion resulting in death [Act 26 of 1956, Section 27 (2)] and malicious damage to property.
According to a statement from the office of the Provincial Commissioner of the SAPS, the driver was arrested on the night of the incident at a private hospital where he was receiving treatment for minor injuries.
That morning, at around 06:15, various SAPS specialised units, as well as officials from the Road Traffic Management Corporation, EMPD, Gauteng Emergency Services, Ekurhuleni Emergency Management Services, Provincial Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs, Disaster Management, Response and Rescue personnel and specialised equipment were dispatched to the railway bridge in Hospital Road following an explosion.
Preliminary investigations found that the loaded gas tanker got stuck trying to drive under the bridge and the impact resulted in an explosion.
The media statement issued by the SAPS on Christmas Day stated multiple people were injured, including eight firefighters, and taken to various hospitals.
To date, the statement read, 15 people sustained fatal injuries, including a 10-year-old boy.
The gas tanker was alleged to be en route from Richard’s Bay to Botswana.
