Death toll of R617 crash in KZN rises to 12

KwaZulu-Natal Acting Transport MEC, Jomo Sibiya says the death toll in the R617 crash near Mpophomeni has risen to 17.

Last night 17 people died in two separate crashes on the Province’s road. It is alleged that a taxi that was travelling from Mpendle to Umlazi stopped on the side of the road to investigate why one of its passengers jumped out of the moving vehicle.

According to the KZN Department of Transport’s Facebook post, the deceased include occupants in the taxi, the owner of a security company that working on site nearby the scene and a police officer who had attended the initial scene of a culpable homicide incident.

High speed

Sibiya adds that a light motor vehicle travelling at high speed crashed into the stationery taxi, killing 11 people including a police officer who was directing traffic.

He explains further, “…What happened is that a car that came with speed in fact I don’t even want to start imagining the speed because looking at the accident it tells you that the car that caused the accident was on high speed. So the taxi was just on the side of the road with the people standing on the side of the road as well. This car just came in and hit everything and smashed everything that was on its path, and one of the members who were in the hospital we heard that he has lost his life as well and the number now is sitting at 12.”

The KwaZulu-Natal Acting MEC for Transport together with Umgungundlovu District Municipality Mayor, Councillor Mzi Zuma and Head of Department Mr Siboniso Mbhele met with the families of the 12 people who died in a fatal road accident at the Mpophomeni Community Hall.