CAPE TOWN, Jan. 10 — Nine people were killed when two minibuses collided head-on Sunday night in Eastern Cape Province, South Africa, local authorities said on Monday.
The collision happened when a fully-loaded minibus taxi heading for the seaport city of Gqeberha on the N2 road hit another minibus taxi with two occupants travelling in the opposite direction between Makhanda and Nanaga towns, Eastern Cape’s Department of Transport said on its Facebook page.
Seven people in the first vehicle and the two, who were suspected to be a couple, in the second one died in the collision, it said, adding that the killed included two children between the age of one and four years.
The accident came days after six people died and nine others were injured in another head-on collision of two minibus taxis in the same province.
South Africa is now at the end of the festive season when more people are travelling.
The official figures released on Dec. 22, 2021, showed that the number of fatalities in car accidents in South Africa dropped marginally, from 848 in 2020 to 822 in 2021. The government said it is concerned about the high number of major crashes where five or more people perish in a single accident.
The figures also showed that car crashes with multiple fatalities increased to 17 from seven over the same period, and the number of fatalities from major crashes increased to 111 in 2021 from 34 in the previous year. (Xinhua)
Nine die when two minibuses collide head-on in South Africa
