MBOMBELA - A total of 15 people lost their lives this weekend in accidents on various roads across the province. Most of these fatal crashes occurred on Saturday. On the R546 Road between Charl Cilliers and Embalenhle, four lives were lost in a head-on collision between two sedans. The accident happened around 06h00 on Saturday. Three of the victims died on the scene while a fourth died in hospital.

In another head-on collision on the R545 Road near Kriel, also on Saturday at around 18h30, the drivers of the two vehicles were killed on impact. Three passengers sustained serious injuries and were rushed to nearby hospitals. 

This was, however, not the end of the day’s fatalities. About an hour and a half later, another horrific collision on the R555 Road between Middelburg and Stofberg claimed the lives of the driver of a bakkie and six of his passengers. Indications are that a trailer, towed by one of the vehicles, unhooked and struck the bakkie head-on. The driver apparently lost control and the vehicle collided head-on with a truck. Half-an-hour later, at approximately 19h30, two more people were killed when their bakkie collided with two articulated trucks. Investigations into the causes of these accidents are currently underway. 

Mpumalanga MEC for Community Safety, Security and Liaison, Gabisile Shabalala, once again appealed to motorists to obey the rules of the road. These crashes, she believes, could have been avoided had greater care been taken by those involved. She says the fact that most of these crashes were head-on collisions, is an indication that human error is the likely cause.

"Motorists should refrain from behaving dangerously on the road as this endangers their lives of other innocent road users. We have pleaded numerous times with motorists to be patient on the roads, but these calls seem to go unheeded. We believe that a change in attitude towards road safety among motorists can save many lives on our province’s roads, especially over weekends," the MEC said. She added that it remained the responsibility of each and every driver to ensure his/her own safety and that of their passengers. She also encouraged people to take appropriate action, should they encounter reckless behaviour on the roads.

"Passengers must not keep quiet when their lives are put in danger. We cannot have so many deaths in one day as too many families are being left devastated," she said. The MEC also sent her condolences to the families of the of the deceased and wished the injured a speedy recovery.

Editor: Anchen Coetzee
Subeditor: Lynette Brink
Submitted by: Moeti Mmusi
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