GALLERY: Four dead, 20 injured in weekend road carnage
Four people, two of them children, died in road accidents over the weekend - while many others were seriously injured
Four people, two of them small children, died during three separate and horrific crashes while a further 20 were injured, some critically.
On the R34 between Empangeni and Melmoth seven accidents were recorded on Saturday night and Sunday morning alone, resulting in one fatality.
Saturday
On Saturday evening IPSS Medical Rescue responded to a crash at Fort Pearson near Mandeni on the R102.
Dylan Meyrick of IPSS Rescue said paramedics arrived on scene to find that two passengers from the car which had overturned were ejected.
‘They found an 18-month-old baby boy lying in the road in a critical condition,’ he said.
‘He was treated by an Advanced Life Support medic before being transported to Stanger Hospital.’
The remaining three passengers of the car were seriously injured.
Later on Saturday night, IPSS again responded to a serious crash, this time on the N2 near Tugela.
Reportedly, a car travelling south lost control and collided with rolls of paper that had fallen off a truck earlier in the evening.
A breakdown team was conducting a recovery operation at the time.
Three people, a woman and two small children, died.
‘One of the children, around four years of age was in a critical condition when paramedics arrived on scene,’ said Meyrick.
‘Despite advanced life support care, the child died on scene.’
The other child, also declared dead on scene, was two years old.
‘Three adults were transported to Stanger Hospital in a critical condition.’
Sunday
Sunday morning sunrise brought light to a serious crash on the R34 at Empangeni.
A double-cab Ford Ranger collided with a Hyundai passenger carrier head-on, resulting in the death of one man while 14 others sustained serious injuries.
Nearly 30 trucks were queued from Ngwelezane intersection to where the accident occurred around two kilometres from Qalakabusha Prison, causing massive delays for motorists.
Firefighters worked fervently to extract one of the passengers from the Hyundai bakkie, while a second passenger was declared dead on scene.
Emergency services said no serious injuries were reported during other accidents on the R34.
Police investigations are now underway to determine the cause of the collisions.
Read more in the Zululand Observer Monday edition out tomorrow.
