15 Killed, 37 Injured In Horrific Early Morning Crash In Tshwane
At least 15 people were killed in a horrific collision on the Hornsnek Road near Ga-Rankuwa, north of Tshwane, involving a bus and a truck.
Thabo Charles Mabaso, spokesperson for the Tshwane Emergency Services Department, said rescue workers were still on the scene, which was in complete chaos.
“Please take note of a bus and a truck accident that collided head-on, on the M17 the Hornsnek Road near the Bundu Inn in Tshwane. Emergency services are on scene with multiple patients. The patient count is underway at the moment,” said Mabaso.
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“Paramedics declared 15 patients dead on scene, while 37 patients were transported to between Dr George Mukhari, Steve Biko and Kalafong Hospitals. Of the 15 deceased, eight were females and seven males whereas 26 patients sustained minor to moderate injuries. Four sustained moderate to critical injuries and seven suffered critical injuries.”
The M17 Road remains closed between the N4 on and off ramps and the K8, in Rosslyn, according to Mabaso, “to allow for the recovery of the deceased, the bus and truck, as well as on-scene investigations.
He estimated that the road closure would last more than five hours. The cause of the head-on collision had not been determined, according to Tshwane authorities.
“So far we do not have details as to what is the exact cause of the accident. As you can see, it is winter, it might have been still early and dark and visibility reduced. You cannot rule out hindrances that could have led to an accident like this,” Mabaso told broadcaster eNCA at the accident scene.
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“Law enforcement are on scene and this will carry on with the investigations as to what exactly the cause of the accident is.”
JP Von Benecke of Gauteng Emergency Medical Services told eNCA that the collision happened around 5 a.m. and that it was still dark when his team arrived on the scene.
“It was absolute chaos. We had a lot of people still trapped in the bus. We then had to establish on the patients to see who is alive, who we can help and those that we can help first out of the bus, get them into an ambulance and get them to a hospital,” he said.
He stated that all of the people in the two vehicles were adults. “When I stopped my car way up the road, I could hear the people screaming from the bus already. There was absolute panic and desperation just to get out of that vehicle,” said Von Benecke.
