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Thupeyo Muleya-Beitbridge Bureau

THE Zimbabwe Consulate in Cape Town has sent a team to the scene of an accident where 13 Zimbabweans were killed and others injured, including 12 still in hospital, when their coach collided with a haulage truck on the N1 highway near Hex River Pass, Western Cape, South Africa.

The team will be assisting the injured and the families of the deceased.

Tragedy struck on Saturday night when a Simplex Bus Company coach collided with a commercial truck that was going in the opposite direction, some 140km before Cape Town along the Hex River Pass. The bus was travelling from Harare to Cape Town.

The area around the Hex River Pass has sharp curves and the driver reportedly jumped out of the bus just before the collision, but unfortunately he died as well.

Zimbabwe’s Consul-General in Cape Town Ms Esther Mudambo said the 13 dead were yet to be identified. She said a team was already on the ground working with the host government and the relatives of the accident victims.

“Following the tragic accident that occurred on March 9, about 140km from Cape Town, South Africa along the N1 Highway, involving a Zimbabwe operated bus company, Simplex Tours, officials from the Zimbabwe Consulate visited the accident scene to offer assistance,” said the Consul-General.

“Currently, the consulate is working flat out to assist the victims of the accident. Preliminary reports indicate that 13 people are confirmed dead, while 12 are still hospitalised, nine are at the Worcester Hospital and three others are hospitalised in Cape Town”.

Thirty-eight have since been discharged and further details will be availed in due course.

Zimbabwe Passengers Transport Organisation (ZPTO) chairman, Dr Samson Nhanhanga, on Sunday evening expressed his condolences to the grieving families on behalf of the organisation.

He said ZPTO was saddened by the loss of lives of the passengers and that the organisation had dispatched a team to South Africa to help the victims and bereaved families with the necessary compassionate assistance they may require.

“We mourn with the grieving families who lost mostly their bread winners and as an association we have dispatched a team of people to South Africa who are helping the police to make sure that the injured get medical assistance,” said Mr Nhanhanga.

“We are also in constant touch with the bereaved families in consoling them and making sure all the necessary paperwork is done.

“The association will also continue to update Zimbabweans on any development. 

“At the same time, we continue to urge our crews to be responsible and obey the rules of the road all the time to save lives”.