A HEAD-ON collision involving two minibus taxis, which occurred on the N2 between Makhanda and Nanaga on Sunday, has claimed nine lives.
This was confirmed by the spokesperson for the Department of Transport, Unathi Binqose.
He said a fully loaded taxi, travelling towards the Gqebera direction, collided with another taxi, travelling in the opposite direction, carrying only two occupants, thought to be a husband and wife.
He said the two both died in the accident, along with seven people from the other taxi.
“One Quantum was travelling from Gqeberha to Mthatha, with only two occupants and the other one was travelling from Tsolo to Mossel Bay, fully loaded. Three adult females, four adult males and two children, aged between one and four, died in this accident,” said Binqose.
He added that this was the second incident involving a head-on collision in a short time.
He said the first incident happened on the N9 between Graaff-Reinet and Aberdeen on January 7.
Binqose said in this incident, both vehicles were also travelling from opposite directions. The one coming from the Aberdeen side only had one occupant, while the Toyota minibus coming from Graaff-Reinet carried 14 occupants.
“This incident left six people dead and nine others in hospital with injuries. In both these incidents, one of the drivers was driving on the wrong side of the road.
“We appeal to all road users to obey the rules, especially now that the roads will be very busy in the coming weeks.” MEC for Transport, Weziwe Tikana-Gxothiwe, has extended her deepest words of condolence for the bereaved families in what remains the single crash that has claimed the most lives in the province this season.
The deputy chairperson for the South African National Taxi Council (SANTACO), Andile Sifolo, said even though he was not aware of this accident, they always urged their drivers to be vigilant on the road.
“We always advise that there should be two drivers in a taxi so that they could take turns when driving.
“We also make sure that if the driver was driving a long distance, he did not take another long trip if he did not get enough rest.
“This (loss of life) is painful and we are appealing to drivers to ensure that they rest because families are losing their loved ones due to these collisions,” said Sifolo.
