In a very sad development, 13 people are reported to have died on Friday in two separate traffic accidents.
In the first accident, 6 people who were going about minding their business were struck and killed by a motorist near Mt Darwin. The reckless motorist who was driving a BMW vehicle was apparently drag-racing along the Harare-Mukumbura Road.
Unfortunately, near the 135 km peg, at around 1020 AM the motorist who was allegedly travelling at recklessly high speeds lost control of his vehicle and struck 7 people who were walking along the edge of the road. 6 of the pedestrians died from the injuries sustained while the seventh pedestrian was critically injured.
According to the Zimbabwe Republic Police, one of the deceased had just disembarked from another vehicle when he was struck and killed. The injured pedestrian was transported to Mt Darwin Hospital for urgent medical attention. The bodies of the 6 deceased were also transported to the Mt Darwin Hospital mortuary where postmortem examinations will be conducted.
The police are yet to release further details on the horrific accident. However, National Police Spokesperson Assistant Commissioner Paul Nyathi called on motorists to exercise extreme caution and to avoid speeding.
In the second accident, 7 prisoners and Zimbabwe Prisons and Correctional Services officers died near Nyanga following a horrific head-on collision with a fuel tanker.
According to the police, the accident occured at the 67-kilometre peg along the Mutare-Juliasdale Road at around 1105 AM, when the driver of the fuel tanker encroached into the lane of the vehicle with the prisoners and the ZPCS officers resulting in the terrible collision. The prisoners were being transported to court in a Nissan NP300 vehicle which had 9 people on board. 7 people who were in the prisons vehicle died on the spot. The bodies of the deceased were taken to Bonda Mission Hospital mortuary for postmortem.
The police are yet to release the full details of who died in the accident. The names of the deceased will only be released after the next of kin have been advised.
Assistant Commissioner Paul Nyathi said,
Motorists are urged to be observant, exercise extreme caution and avoid speeding especially during this wet period. It is the responsibility of drivers to be safety conscious on the roads. – iharare
