East Cape roads take grim toll
The Eastern Cape is home to some of the country’s deadliest roads, with the province contributing more than 25% of the preliminary road death toll figures for this festive season.
In his mid-festive season road-safety report, released in December, transport minister Blade Nzimande said there had already been 767 reported fatalities around the country.
In the Eastern Cape, the grim toll was more than 200.
The latest casualties include four people who died in a horror crash near Nanaga just outside Nelson Mandela Bay on Friday night.
Eastern Cape traffic deputy director Charles Bramwell said a car collided head-on with a Translux bus travelling from Port Elizabeth towards Makhanda (Grahamstown).
All the occupants of the car, including the 35-year-old male driver, two females and a 10year-old boy, died on impact and had to be removed from the wreckage with the jaws of life, Bramwell said.
Their car had a Cape Town registration number.
The bus driver and several passengers sustained light injuries and were transported to hospitals in Port Elizabeth.
The names of the victims have not yet been released.
Provincial transport spokesperson Unathi Binqose said: “The MEC [for transport, safety and liaison Weziwe Tikana] is deeply saddened and extremely disturbed by the road crashes that have claimed hundreds of lives on our roads this festive season.
“With regard to the accident that happened [on Friday night], the MEC acknowledges that signage needs to be improved on that road and she has committed to engage Sanral [SA National Roads Agency] with regard to that because it had been a subject of discussion and it may have led to quite a number of accidents in the past,” Binqose said.
“The MEC would also like to convey condolences to the families who have lost their loved ones and wishes a speedy recovery to those who were injured.”
Binqose said there were more than 200 fatalities on Eastern Cape roads since December 1. Nzimande is expected to release the final road death toll statistics next week.
In his mid-festive season report, Nzimande said a total of 34 minibus vehicles had been involved in fatal collisions around the country, while 44 trucks were in deadly crashes.
“I have been extremely concerned about the high number of public and freight transport vehicles involved in fatal crashes so far in the festive season.
“When these vehicles get involved in crashes, the number of fatalities increases phenomenally,” he said.
Most crashes took place on a Saturday, Sunday and Monday and between 7pm and 8pm and between 10pm and 11pm, Nzimande said. –