Nine schoolchildren injured in Durban scholar transport crash

The taxi carrying school kids home T-boned a bakkie.


At least nine schoolchildren have been injured in a school transport accident in KwaZulu-Natal (KZN).

It is understood that the accident occurred at about 3pm on Lena Ahrens Rd near Rhodes Avenue in the Glenwood area of Durban on Monday.

Accident

ALS Paramedics spokesperson Garrith Jamieson said paramedics arrived on the scene to find that a Taxi carrying school kids home had T Boned a bakkie.

“Paramedics assessed the scene and found that nine children of various ages had sustained various injuries. Immediately, more ambulances were dispatched to assist. Once triaged and stabilised on scene, the children were taken to various Durban Hospitals for further care that they required.”

Jamieson said the cause of the accident is being investigated.  

“At this stage, the events leading up to the crash are unknown; however, Saps were in attendance and will be investigating further.”

ALSO READ: Tshwane cracks down on illegal scholar transport vehicles

Scholar transport

Scholar transport has come under scrutiny after 14 young children tragically died in a head-on crash with a truck on the R553 Golden Highway in Vanderbijlpark.

Last week, authorities impounded more than 60 scholar vehicles carrying more children than they were allowed to, including illegal transport vehicles and those without public driving permits (PDPs) in Lenasia, south of Johannesburg.

Transport Minister Barbara Creecy conducted a blitz inspection of scholar transport in Lenasia following the horrific head-on crash with a truck in Vanderbijlpark on Monday.

Taxi driver

During the blitz, The Citizen discovered an overloaded Suzuki Ertiga with 14 scholars. The vehicle is only licensed to carry 7 passengers.

A bus, which was licensed to carry 60 pupils, was also overloaded with 98 pupils and was stopped during the operation.

Meanwhile, the 22-year-old scholar transport driver arrested in connection with the deaths of 14 school children in the horror Vanderbijlpark accident has abandoned his bid for bail.

The case was postponed to 5 March 2026.

ALSO READ: Lack of law enforcement has brought ‘scholar transport service to its knees’, Creecy says