Malayitsha kills a cyclist

A CYCLIST died on the spot after he was knocked down by a South Africa-bound Toyota Quantum at Stanmore along the Bulawayo- Beitbridge highway.

Matabeleland South provincial police spokesperson, Chief Inspector Philisani Ndebele confirmed the accident which occurred on Tuesday at around 9AM at the 92 kilometre peg along the Bulawayo-Beitbridge Road.

He said the driver of the Quantum Dalubuhle Dlamini tried to overtake Louise Ngwenya (27) who was cycling towards Gwanda Town but hit him.

"I can confirm that we recorded a fatal accident where a driver of a South African registered Quantum hit a cyclist and he died on the spot. The cyclist of Stanmore in Gwanda was headed towards Gwanda Town while the vehicle which was being driven by Dalubuhle Dlamini of Dambashoko Village in Gwanda was following behind.

"Dlamini then tried to drive past Ngwenya and in the process hit him from behind. Ngwenya sustained head injuries and died on the spot. Police were called to attend the scene. Preliminary investigations show that the driver of the vehicle made an error as he tried to overtake the cyclist," said Chief Insp Ndebele.

He said they had launched a festive season traffic awareness campaign in conjunction with the Traffic Safety Council which was going to stretch to January 15 as part of efforts to reduce road accidents.

The police spokesperson said the campaign will mainly target the Bulawayo- Beitbridge and Bulawayo- Plumtree Highways. He said they will be educating road users on the importance of observing road regulations.

"We have launched a joint campaign together with the Traffic Safety Council and other stakeholders like the VID which begins today. The campaign together with these partners will stretch up to January 4 but as police we will extend it to January 15. This campaign seeks to reduce road traffic accidents during the festive season.

"We are targeting major highways but we might also extend to smaller roads. During the campaign we will be distributing literature to road users and educating them on the need to observe road regulations in order to avoid accidents. We therefore ask for maximum cooperation from all road users during the course of this operation," he said.

Chief Insp Ndebele urged motorists to exercise caution, observe speed limits, rest when fatigued, and desist from overloading vehicles as well as crossing flooded rivers.

He also urged members of the public to leave their premises properly secured or even guarded when travelling for the festive season. Chief Insp Ndebele said they had set up a WhatsApp hotline 0714 590 986 for Matabeleland South province and urged members of the public to utilise it.