BARBERTON – A father who lost his wife and child in a vehicle accident the previous night, narrowly escaped death on Monday morning.

One dead in horror collision at Jerusalem Kop

The wife and child, whose identities were not known at the time of going to press, were victims of a multi-vehicle accident that claimed four lives on Sunday.

Three accidents claim six lives in the last 24 hours

According to Moeti Mmusi, spokesman for the Department of Community Safety, Security and Liaison (DCSSL), the incident occurred on the R38 between Barberton and Badplaas at around 19:30.
“It is believed that one of the vehicles, a sedan, lost control and collided with a truck before crashing head on with another vehicle,” he said.

Three people, among whom were the man’s wife, died on the scene, while the fourth, his daughter, later died in hospital.

“Two people are in a critical condition and more sustained serious injuries and are currently being treated at a nearby hospital in Mbombela,” said Mmusi.
Foggy conditions were apparently the reason for the father being involved in an accident on Monday morning. He was allegedly the driver of a Ford Fiesta that collided head-on with a Mercedes-Benz on the R40 near Jerusalem Kop.

Emer-G-Med operations manager, Martin Jeffrey was on the scene. He said there were three occupants in the vehicles, one of whom died on the scene due to the extent of her injuries.
Jeffrey confirmed that the two survivors, one being the father, were transported to Mbombela by Emer-G-Med and the other by Hi-Tech Medical Service personnel.

• In another incident, two vehicles collided head-on near the Mabalel turn-off, resulting in one fatality, two critical injuries and one minor injury at around 13:00 on Sunday. Moeti said that the patients’ current condition is unknown.

DCSSL MEC, Gabisile Shabalala called on road users to practice caution. She attributed the seemingly endless death and injury on the roads to reckless driving.

We all have a collective responsibility to ending these crashes. We need drivers to respect road rules at all times and use the road in a considerate manner,” she said.

“We must all play our part, because government alone will not win the war on the bloodshed on the road. They must refrain from driving under the influence of alcohol or fatigued,” she said.
She also sent condolences to the affected families and wished those injured a speedy recovery.