On a South African highway, a vehicle collided with a minibus, resulting in a tragic accident that took the lives of 19 schoolchildren. Let’s take a closer look at the South African highway disaster and what happened.
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What happened on the highway in South Africa?
The incident occurred on Friday afternoon in the Pongola district, around 300 kilometers north of Durban.
The terrifying dashcam video showed the moment the lorry passed another truck before smashing into the minibus carrying youngsters on the two-lane roadway.
According to local media, the minibus attempted to divert out of the way before being hit by the incoming vehicle. The incident killed three adults and 19 youngsters aged five to twelve, according to authorities.
The accident happened near the border with Eswatini in the Pongola area. South Africa’s roads are among the most developed on the continent, yet safety is still an issue, with irresponsible driving being blamed for the majority of incidents.
The children were reportedly on their way home from school at the time.
What happened to the kids?
The terrifying dashcam video showed the moment the lorry passed another truck before smashing into the minibus carrying youngsters on the two-lane roadway.
According to local media, the minibus attempted to divert out of the way before being hit by the incoming vehicle.
The incident killed three adults and 19 youngsters aged five to twelve, according to authorities.
The children were reportedly on their way home from school at the time.
In addition, according to emergency services Emer-G-Med, up to twelve school children sustained mild to moderate injuries, while one adult also suffered moderate injuries.
According to Kyle van Reenen, a spokesman for Emer-G-Med, the injured pupils were treated and stabilized on the scene before being transferred to multiple nearby hospitals for extra medical assistance.
A truck driver was arrested
According to eNCA, after the truck driver fled the scene, authorities were able to catch him on Saturday after he turned himself in.
He is set to appear in court on Monday.
Furthermore, regional transport minister Sipho Hlomuka stated, “The loss of so many young lives is a big tragedy.”
Although South Africa’s roads are among the most developed on the continent, safety remains a worry because the majority of events are the result of reckless driving.
Similar Tragic Accidents
In 2017, a minibus carrying 19 students collided with a truck in the Mpumalanga province, north of Pretoria, and burst into flames, killing all 19 occupants. According to reports, both primary and high school-aged children were on board.
In 2018, a British teen girl and her royal family-related mother were slain while returning from a safari expedition.
Louise Sword, 53, and Tabitha, 12, were killed when a Mercedes collided with them near Zinkwazi in the KwaZulu-Natal region. Alistair, her 53-year-old husband, and Benjamin, her 11-year-old son, were both rescued from the wrecked SUV.
In 2019, three British tourists were killed while traveling the 450-mile Garden Route from Cape Town to Port Elizabeth when their 4×4 went over a bridge and fell 75 feet into a river.
As the group was beginning to make their way home from their “perfect holiday,” their double-cab Toyota station wagon and luggage trailer were involved in a collision with a Chrysler Neon.
What are people saying about this incident?
IBN stated,
I had been driving down that same road for 15 years. It was always a disaster waiting to happen. Trucks and fast autos are slowed by residential neighborhoods and steep hills. Heartbreaking.
Acteon stated,
Two things stand out in this case. First, the truck did not even attempt to slow down before contact, despite the fact that the van was clearly visible…. Second, is the van a disguised clown car? How do you fit 21 people into that thing?
Craze stated,
In South Africa, the vans are similar to taxis in that they are virtually always filled.
Wunch stated,
I spotted the van veering to the left and the truck following.
posted entrophic,
We have something comparable to school buses down here in South America, which are large vehicles that you can pack kids into to carry them home or to school; this was most likely one of those.
Greg stated,
Even if he used the air brakes. Slowing down a vehicle with that much mass and inertia takes a long time.
Excellent post,
I believe the truck’s brakes failed. Air brakes become heated and eventually fail. The same is true with hydraulic brakes, but when you have a load and begin to lose the rig, you have to bin it wherever you can.
There is no open,
I was thinking about both of those things. Anyone packing 19 youngsters into a van strikes me as suspect.
Bluscus wrote,
This is situated in South Africa. And, as a South African, this type of driving is entirely typical. Every day, there are SO MANY traffic fatalities. Not to mention the number of automobiles on the road that are significantly overloaded. It’s frightening.
Allie stated,
The driver claimed his brakes failed and he fled the scene. He was arrested and is scheduled to appear in court on Monday. One report virtually blames the truck that was transporting children to school on “unregulated school transportation.”
In South Africa, a truck collides with a school bus, killing 19 children and two adults
A truck collided head-on with a school bus on a South African highway on Friday, killing 19 children and two adults.
According to local station News 24, the truck driver was recorded on dashcam footage attempting to unlawfully pass another truck over a double line on a two-lane highway outside Pongola before crashing into the bus.
The motorist is apparently facing culpable homicide and negligent driving charges. According to the site, he surrendered to authorities after fleeing the scene.
According to the station, all of the children slain were between the ages of 5 and 12. According to reports, the two adult victims were the bus driver and another passenger. It was unknown whether anyone on the bus survived.
Locals reported aggressive truck drivers had taken over the roadways since the area’s railroads and ports were shut down.
“Drivers just drive as they like,” Adrian Chaning-Pearce told the station. “Some truck firms don’t pay their drivers correctly, they pay per load.”
“Pongola communities utilizing and living along the N2 are being intimidated, and [warnings] have been issued that there would be issues.” We told the authorities that [what transpired] was just a matter of time.”
