LIMPOPO – The vehicle involved in a fatal incident on the N1 near Bela-Bela on Saturday night, belonged to the Minister of Health Dr Aaron Motsoaledi.

Review received confirmation from the minister’s spokesperson, Sello Lediga. According to Lediga, a Zimbabwean man was killed in a separate incident on the same stretch while crossing the highway, shortly after his female partner and a child disembarked the bus.

“Likely out of panic, the mom and child crossed the road to check on the man, and that is when the vehicle that the minister was travelling in hit, and killed them,” he explained.

The front of the vehicle sustained the most damage. Lediga also confirmed that Motsoaledi was on his way to Pretoria from Limpopo.

On Saturday at around 21:50, the Limpopo Department of Transport and Community Safety reported that two separate vehicles had knocked down pedestrians on the N1 north in the Waterberg District, resulting in three fatalities, advising road users to explore alternative routes. The N1 was open at around 23:00.

The statement mentioned that the lane on both the northbound and southbound carriageways were partially closed while emergency services were on the scene.

Lediga said they had been informed by traffic officers that the area is prone to fatal crashes because buses stop to offload passengers on the highway.

Traffic officials, SAPS members and emergency medical services remained on site late into Saturday night to manage traffic flow.

The department urged motorists to reduce speed in areas with pedestrians and to adhere to road safety regulations. 

No other injuries were reported.