[GRAPHIC PICS] Culpable homicide case opened after horrific crash

A reconstruction of the accident was done in order to understand what exactly happened.

January 23, 2017

Bianca Pindral 2 minutes read

The scene where a taxi and a truck collided, resulting in eight people dying. Photo: Bianca Pindral.

Mixed reports from the scene of a horrific accident on Friday, 20 January, suggest that police might not be sure about the actual cause of the collision until forensic pathologists and accident reconstruction crews are done with the scene.

Officials took pictures of the scene while waiting for regional police to arrive.

Read initial article here: Eight die after truck and taxi collide

Eight people died and another eight were critically injured in the collision between a taxi and a truck on the R24 (Luipaard Street) next to the premises of the Krugersdorp Correctional Services at about 3pm.

After carefully reconstructing the scene, it was discovered that the truck driver was heading towards Magaliesburg with a load of barrels – not gas bottles as was stated in the initial report. The driver was heading downhill in the left lane of the dual carriageway when he noticed a large puddle of water in the dip in front of him. The driver moved over to the right lane to avoid hitting the puddle of water, then lost control of his vehicle and veered over into oncoming traffic.

The body of a man was placed onto the bent taxi door after he was declared dead by paramedics.

While the truck and trailer were positioned diagonally across the oncoming traffic lanes, an approaching taxi drove into the trailer with incredible force. The taxi spun through 180 degrees before coming to a standstill.

The truck crashed into the fence of the Krugersdorp Prison after it jackknifed. Emergency workers, Sector 5 Community Policing Forum members, local authorities and the Fire Department’s search and rescue workers were all on scene after the collision.

Various emergency service personnel worked alongside paramedics to extricate and stabilise patients. Ambulances took eight patients to nearby hospitals for urgent medical attention while Krugersdorp Police and CPF members secured the scene. Because of the time of day, traffic on the R24 was heavy, and Krugersdorp Traffic Police had to divert traffic onto Munsie Avenue.

The taxi was written off after it collided with a truck on the R24. Deceased passengers of the taxi were left in the front of the taxi while officials waited for regional police to arrive on scene.

The remaining eight passengers were declared dead on scene and police contacted the Roodepoort Forensic Pathologists to intervene – standard procedure requires that regional police are to be contacted for any crash scene in which more than five people are killed.

The regional police arrived on the scene and worked alongside local authorities to assess the scene. They had a hard time working as it was raining most of the time.

The deceased suffered fatal injuries varying from crushed skulls, mutilation and fractures. After about two hours of scene assessment, police, search and rescue personnel and emergency service personnel helped remove the bodies of the deceased from the taxi and loaded them into various Pathology Services vehicles. They used the Jaws of Life to free the deceased.