Cape Town — Five men were killed in a horrific accident when a truck carrying heavy wooden logs overturned on the R33 road between Carlina and Warburton in Mpumalanga, authorities reported.
According to the spokesperson for the Mpumalanga department of community safety, security and liaison, Moeti Mmusi, all the casualties were passengers on the truck, while a further three were injured in the incident, IOL reported.
“The deceased are all males and they were passengers in the truck. The driver is among the three injured people who were rushed to the nearby Carolina Provincial Hospital for further medical attention,” Mmusi said.
Mmusi provided an update on Tuesday morning, saying the fifth person succumbed to their injuries while being treated for their injuries in hospital.
Initial suspicions are that the driver lost control of the truck before it overturned, and authorities said investigations into the crash are already underway.
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This was the second major accident in Mpumalanga in the space of 48 hours, following an incident where a vehicle overturned, killing three people on the R23 between Balfour and Heidelberg, with a further two people reported to sustain injuries, as reported by JacarandaFM.
According to Mpumalanga MEC for Community Safety Security, Vusi Shongwe, he urged motorists to obey the rules of the road.
“We need to turn the situation around on our roads to curb needless loss of life. We cannot continue to lose lives like this as a result of crashes. Motorists must play their part by obeying the rules and tolerating each other.”
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Compiled by Matthew Petersen
