Ten killed as bus travelling from Zimbabwe overturns in South Africa

By Mark Ogagan

A bus travelling from Zimbabwe lost control and overturned in South Africa’s northeastern Limpopo province on Wednesday, killing 10 people and injuring 35, the local transport ministry said.

Five men and five women, who are “reportedly foreign nationals”, were on their way to Johannesburg when the accident happened just before midnight on Tuesday, the government said in a statement.

“The bus drove over a roundabout… at high speed, lost control and overturned, killing and injuring its passengers in the process,” it said.

According to authorities, the driver was “new in his job, and not familiar with the surroundings”.

The injured passengers were taken to local hospitals.

South Africa has one of the most developed road networks on the continent but also one of the worst road safety records, in part due to reckless driving and vehicles that are not roadworthy.

In the worst road accident in South Africa this year, 45 people heading to a religious event were killed in March when their bus plunged off a bridge into a ravine in the north of the country.

The local government “has sent messages of condolences to the families of the deceased and has also urged motorists to be alert of their surroundings and drive with caution, at all times,” it said.