The Zimbabwe Embassy in South Africa has deployed a team to assess the needs and ascertain circumstances around a bus accident that claimed the lives of 13 Zimbabweans in the Western Cape Province on Saturday evening.
A Simlex Bus Company coach collided with a commercial truck that was going in the opposite direction, 140km before Cape Town along the Hex River Pass.
The bus was travelling from Harare to Cape Town. The stretch of road on which the accident occurred has sharp curves.
Reports suggest that the driver jumped out of the bus during the collision, but unfortunately, he died as well.
Zimbabwe’s Consular General in Cape Town, Esther Mudambo said the 13 people who perished in the accident were yet to be identified. She said (via The Herald):
Following the tragic accident that occurred on March 9, about 140 km from Cape Town, South Africa along the N1 highway, involving a Zimbabwe-operated bus company, Simlex Tours, officials from the Zimbabwe Consulate visited the accident scene to offer assistance.
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 (38) have since been discharged and further details will be availed in due course.
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