Beitbridge accident death toll rises

The death toll from the Beitbridge accident which occurred early Monday morning has gone up to eight, hospital sources have revealed.

One of the four seriously injured passengers succumbed to injuries on his way to a referral hospital in Bulawayo.

"He did not make it, he succumbed to his injuries and died en-route," sources at Beitbridge District Hospital said yesterday.

The deceased, who were coming from a failed trip to smuggle cigarettes to South Africa, were part of a group of 15 men who eke out a living from carrying cigarettes for dealers smuggling them into South Africa.

A section of Dulivhadzimo township where most of the deceased stayed was plunged into mourning as relatives struggled to come to terms with the loss of their loved ones.

"People are hurting. It is a very sad holiday and the deceased were friends and relatives who died as they tried to earn a living," a neighbour of one of the deceased said.

Meanwhile, the driver of the ill-fated truck was reportedly spotted at a South African Hospital yesterday.

The driver now known to be a resident of Lutumba, a hub for smuggled goods, allegedly fled from the accident scene despite sustaining fractured limbs.

He is reported to have been helped by other villagers who know him to flee into South Africa where he has been admitted in a hospital.

"We heard he is in South Africa. He has been admitted in hospital," a source revealed.

Both local and South African police could not confirm the allegations.