At least 12 people were killed and 45 others injured when a bus overturned on a highway near Johannesburg’s OR Tambo International Airport early Tuesday.
According to the news agency AP, the accident occurred when a bus was carrying passengers from the township of Katlehong, east of Johannesburg.
The impact of the crash caused passengers to be thrown out of the vehicle, leaving many lying across the road.
Emergency responders rushed to the scene and worked to lift the bus back onto its wheels to check if any victims were trapped underneath, said William Nthladi, spokesperson for Ekurhuleni Emergency Management.
“On arrival, we found patients lying across the road,” Nthladi said.
The cause of the crash remains unclear and no other vehicles were involved. Police are treating the site as a crime scene due to the fatalities, and an investigation is underway.
A survivor told Newzroom Afrika that the bus appeared to have been speeding before it overturned. Authorities have not yet confirmed whether speed played a role in the crash.
Ekurhuleni transport official Andile Mngwevu called the accident “a disaster,” saying, “We are lost for words.”
Despite having well-developed roads, South Africa has one of the highest rates of traffic-related deaths, often attributed to reckless driving, speeding, unroadworthy vehicles and failure to use seat belts.
Just a day before this incident, four schoolchildren were killed and five others injured in a collision in Ekurhuleni, as per AFP.
Last week, at least nine people, including a four-year-old child, lost their lives when a bus crashed into a ditch in KwaZulu-Natal province. The 82-seater bus had been transporting churchgoers home.