'Horrific' head-on collision in South Africa

[News_Editor]

WITBANK, SOUTH AFRICA (BNO NEWS) -- Fifteen people were killed Friday in a "horrific" head-on collision between a taxi and a truck in South Africa's northeastern region, officials said on Friday, describing a scene so gruesome that several paramedics decided to seek trauma counseling.

The accident happened just after 4 p.m. local time on Friday on R555 near Witbank, a city in Mpumalanga province, when a taxi and a truck collided head-on. The minibus taxi, which was carrying sixteen people, was traveling from Johannesburg's East Rand to the city of Witbank, which is also known as eMalahleni.

"Paramedics from ER24 and local emergency services received the emergency call [in which] the caller only described the incident as horrific. Paramedics that arrived on the scene found people strewn across the road," said ER24 spokesman Werner Vermaak. "Paramedics that attended the scene explained that people were ripped apart during the collision."

Fifteen people were confirmed dead while only two people survived the accident, including a taxi passenger who was critically injured and the truck driver who sustained moderate injuries. Both victims were transported to a local hospital for further treatment, but updated information about their conditions was not available.

"According to bystanders on the scene, an articulated truck and a taxi collided head-on with each other, leaving a path of carnage before both vehicles came to rest," Vermaak explained. "The exact cause of the incident is not yet known and local authorities will be conducting an investigation into this crash."

The spokesman said the scene of the crash was so gruesome that several paramedics sought trauma counseling on Saturday.

"Amongst those killed were three children believed to be between the ages of three and six years," he added.

Despite good infrastructure, roads in South Africa are considered to be among the world's most dangerous, with more than 13,000 people killed every year. Many accidents are attributed to reckless driving, speeding, drunk driving, fatigue, and the poor maintenance of buses and taxis.

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