KwaZulu-Natal – Search and rescue teams have recovered the wreckage of a vehicle that plunged down a cliff in KwaSwayimane, outside Pietermaritzburg, killing two women on Saturday.
According to the KwaZulu-Natal Department of Transport and Human Settlements, it is unclear what caused the vehicle to reverse and fall more than 800 metres down the cliff.
The victims have been identified as Mama Shabalala, a single mother, and Ms Madlala, a Grade 12 pupil.
Transport MEC Siboniso Duma said he had sent officials to support the bereaved families and arranged for social workers to provide counselling.
“I sent a team from my office to visit the Shabalala and Madlala families in Ward 3, KwaSwayimane, outside Pietermaritzburg. We are saddened by the death of Mama Shabalala and Ms Madlala, a Grade 12 pupil. Both were in the car,” Duma said.
He added: “Mama Shabalala, a single parent, received this car last year as a gift from her children. Sadly, she left us on Women’s Day.”
Meanwhile, in Limpopo, four women died when a bus overturned on the R81 in Sekgopo, Mopani District, on Saturday evening.
Preliminary reports indicate the driver lost control of the vehicle, causing it to overturn.
Limpopo Department of Transport and Community Safety spokesperson Tidimalo Chuene confirmed that eight passengers sustained serious to moderate injuries, while 45 others, including the driver, suffered minor injuries.
All injured passengers were transported to nearby hospitals for treatment.
The causes of both accidents are under investigation.
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Picture: Facebook/KZN Department of Transport
Compiled by Betha Madhomu
