KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) MEC for Transport, Community Safety and Liaison, Willies Mchunu is saddened by the tragic death of eight (8) following a head-on collision in Highflats, South of KZN. The accidents happened on R612 between Highflats and iXobho, Friday afternoon. A minibus was travelling from Durban to Highflats with 11 occupants collided with a truck.
Six (6) people died on the scene and two later died at Christ the King Hospital. It is believed that one driver disregarded traffic signs at the St Faiths intersection resulting in the gruesome accident. A truck driver fled the scene. However MEC Mchunu has vowed that law enforcement agencies will not rest, until he is arrested and answer in the court of law.
“I am saddened by the fact that people continue to lose their lives on our roads. This accident comes as I have just presented the budget speech for the Department of Transport at the Legislature under the theme: Accelerating activism against road carnages and transgressions. I presented at the Legislature a report indicating a significant reduction of 33.6 percent on road fatalities over the past four years.
“It is accidents like this which are clear examples that people who disregard the rule of law are costing us the lives of innocent people. We have now endorsed drastic measures to ensure that those who are transgressing on the road are dealt with harshly. We are now instituting a full investigation into the cause of this accident.
“During the budget speech I announced a Track Team that will deal with identifying and arresting all repeat offenders who have outstanding warrants. This team will even look for traffic offenders at their homes and work places. We are of a firm view that punitive measures are needed to address road crashes and fatalities,” said Mchunu.
In a separate incident on the N2 in Mtubatuba, a VW Golf collided head-on with a Fidelity Security vehicle last night; three occupants in the VW Golf were burnt beyond recognition.
“It frightens me that more than 15 people were killed in our province in one weekend. This is unacceptable. I wish to send our condolences to those families who lost their loved ones,” said Mchunu.
Contact:
Kwanele Ncalane
Cell: 072 803 1462 or 079 699 5755
