A child believed to be five years old was killed on the D533, also known as Jeppes Reef Road, in Mjejane yesterday.

Mpumalanga News reports that the provincial Department of Community Safety, Security and Liaison’s spokesperson, Moeti Mmusi, says the child was pulled under a bus as it moved off after a group of schoolchildren had disembarked.

Mmusi says the operator of the bus involved has not been identified, and no other injuries were reported.

Although Minister of Transport Barbara Creecy reported in mid-January that preliminary data showed a 5% drop in road accident fatalities between December 1 and January 11, with 1 427 fatalities from 1 172 crashes, 2026 is off to a grim start.  Caxton Network News has reported on several horror crashes, including two that ended in several fatalities.

Tragic Vaal scholar crash

Almost two weeks ago, 14 learners died in an accident involving a truck and a taxi. The children were on their way to start their new school year.

Vaalweekblad reported that on Friday, January 23, hundreds of residents came together to bid farewell to those killed in the crash.

Grieving family members shared moving tributes to their loved ones.

The driver of the taxi, Ayanda Dludla (22) ppeared in the Vanderbijlpark Magistrate’s Court on January 22, where his case was postponed until March 5 to allow the police to gather more evidence.

More lives lost in separate taxi-truck crash

A horror crash on the R102 in the Isipingo area, south of Durban, claimed the lives of 11 people on January 29, after a minibus taxi and a truck collided head-on.

The Witness reported that firefighters and paramedics worked for several hours, using specialised rescue equipment to free those trapped inside the vehicle.  

Emergency teams later managed to extricate the taxi driver, who was transported to hospital in a critical condition.

Witnesses alleged that the truck driver attempted to make a U-turn, resulting in a head-on collision with the taxi. 

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