4 killed in road accidents

THREE people died in separate road accidents in Matabeleland North province while one died in Matabeleland South province in accidents that have been blamed on human error.

Matabeleland North province police spokesperson, Assistant Inspector Siphiwe Makonese said the accidents occurred in Hwange, Tsholotsho and Nkayi districts last week.

She said the first accident involving a haulage truck owned by Mr Samuel Gonongono of Victoria Falls happened on 9 June at the 343km peg along the Bulawayo- Victoria Falls road.

"The driver of the truck, Innocent Ndlovu (40), of House Number 17 Motherwell, Hwange, lost control of the vehicle and it veered off the road and plunged into a  trench.

"The driver was trapped inside the horse and died on the spot.

"The passenger on board sustained a small cut on the head and his condition is stable," she said.
Asst Insp Makonese said the second accident occurred on 10 June at the 18km peg along the Tsholotsho-Sikente  Road.

She said on approaching the 18km peg, the driver of a Mazda vehicle with eight passengers on board tried to overtake a commuter omnibus from the left lane but lost control of the vehicle.

"The vehicle veered off the road and overturned before landing on the driver's side.

"One passenger died on the spot while the rest were injured in the process and they are admitted at Tsholotsho District Hospital and their condition is stable," said Asst Insp Makonese.

She said the third accident occurred at the 15km peg along the Bulawayo-Nkayi road when a vehicle that was being driven by Siphethangani Mpofu, of Bulawayo, veered off the road and overturned.

"One passenger died on the spot while the other two were seriously injured and were taken to Nkayi District Hospital."

In Plumtree police have arrested a 20-year-old unlicensed driver after he knocked down two pedestrians resulting in one of them dying on the spot on Monday afternoon.

The acting provincial police spokesperson for Matabeleland South, Sergeant Nkosilathi Sibanda said the accident occurred at around 3.45am at the Bulawayo-Plumtree commuter omnibus terminus in Plumtree.

"On the fateful day, Tusanang Ndabalini Dube was driving a Mazda pick-up along Kingsway road in Plumtree and on approaching the Plumtree-Bulawayo commuter omnibus terminus, he lost control of the vehicle and it veered off the road resulting in him knocking down two pedestrians," he said.

One of the pedestrians died on the spot while the other sustained bruises on the cheek. The two were heading towards Dingumuzi Township.

Sgt Sibanda identified the deceased as Kholwani Nyathi (31), of House Number 888, Matendele suburb in Plumtree.

His body was taken to the Plumtree District Hospital mortuary. The injured was also rushed to the same hospital.

"We have since opened a culpable homicide charge against Dube and that of driving without a licence.

"We suspect the driver was speeding  which resulted in him failing to control the vehicle hence we continue to urge motorists to exercise caution and adhere to stipulated speed limits when using our roads to avoid the recurrence of such incidents in which lives are lost," said Sgt Sibanda.

Asst Insp Makonese urged drivers to avoid speeding and to take extra caution on the roads.

"All these accidents could have been avoided if the drivers were extra careful. Extra care should be taken all the time when the driver intends to overtake," she said.