A group of bus passengers survived two separate accidents within 24 hours.
Passenger Noxolo Ndarala said the first accident took place in Mthatha on Sunday afternoon when the bus driver allegedly overtook a Bantam and hit stray animals in the lane of the oncoming traffic.
She said the driver lost control.
“The driver had no other choice but to hit the animal. If he hadn’t, the bus would have rolled over and killed all of us.”
Explaining the cause of the first accident, Ndarala said a flock of sheep were on the road at the time. “I think there was a problem with the brakes because the driver couldn’t stop the bus. He ended up going off the road.”
Ndarala, who was travelling from Kokstad to East London, said the injured passengers were taken to hospitals in Mthatha.
Health spokesman Sizwe Kupelo confirmed that 20 people were injured, nine of which were minor.
Phakama Hlungela, who was travelling from Durban to Mthatha, said she was admitted to hospital for neck and back pains.
“The accident could not be avoided. It was either we collide with oncoming traffic or we hit the sheep. They did an X-ray on me at the hospital fortunately no bones were broken,” she said.
Ndarala said they waited for more than two hours for the bus company’s management to come and calm them down. A second bus was brought in to transport the passengers and after collecting everyone at hospital, they set off again. However, the second bus was then involved in an accident near Butterworth.
This time, Ndarala said, it involved a Toyota Hilux bakkie that collided head-on with the bus during the early hours of yesterday morning.
She said the Hilux bakkie was facing oncoming traffic and hit them head-on.
Transport spokeswoman Khuselwa Rantjie said at this stage, the department of transport cannot say that the accidents are a trend. She said each incident will be investigated separately.
The Daily Dispatch was yesterday unable to make contact with the bus company’s offices in Mthatha and East London at time of writing yesterday.
— zikhonam@dispatch.co.za
Same passengers caught in two separate bus accidents within 24 hours
Passenger Noxolo Ndarala said the first accident took place in Mthatha on Sunday afternoon when the bus driver allegedly overtook a Bantam and hit stray animals in the lane of the oncoming traffic.
She said the driver lost control.
“The driver had no other choice but to hit the animal. If he hadn’t, the bus would have rolled over and killed all of us.”
Explaining the cause of the first accident, Ndarala said a flock of sheep were on the road at the time. “I think there was a problem with the brakes because the driver couldn’t stop the bus. He ended up going off the road.”
Ndarala, who was travelling from Kokstad to East London, said the injured passengers were taken to hospitals in Mthatha.
Health spokesman Sizwe Kupelo confirmed that 20 people were injured, nine of which were minor.
Phakama Hlungela, who was travelling from Durban to Mthatha, said she was admitted to hospital for neck and back pains.
“The accident could not be avoided. It was either we collide with oncoming traffic or we hit the sheep. They did an X-ray on me at the hospital fortunately no bones were broken,” she said.
Ndarala said they waited for more than two hours for the bus company’s management to come and calm them down. A second bus was brought in to transport the passengers and after collecting everyone at hospital, they set off again. However, the second bus was then involved in an accident near Butterworth.
This time, Ndarala said, it involved a Toyota Hilux bakkie that collided head-on with the bus during the early hours of yesterday morning.
She said the Hilux bakkie was facing oncoming traffic and hit them head-on.
Transport spokeswoman Khuselwa Rantjie said at this stage, the department of transport cannot say that the accidents are a trend. She said each incident will be investigated separately.
The Daily Dispatch was yesterday unable to make contact with the bus company’s offices in Mthatha and East London at time of writing yesterday.
— zikhonam@dispatch.co.za
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