Rescue workers removed every passenger from the bus that went down an embankment on the N2. Nine church members died in the bus crash on Sunday (March 9), between Mandeni and Stanger, north of Durban.
Image: DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORT
Nine people lost their lives and 60 were injured on Sunday, March 9, when a bus transporting members of the Twelve Apostles Church in Trinity experienced a tyre burst and veered down an embankment.
Among those killed was a four-year-old child, they were members of the Twelve Apostle Church in Trinity.
KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) Transport and Human Settlements MEC, Siboniso Duma, has expressed condolences to the families of the nine church members who lost their lives in the bus accident on the N2, between Mandeni and Stanger, in northern KwaZulu-Natal.
“The accident occurred on Sunday afternoon when a bus, transporting members of the Twelve Apostles Church in Trinity from Richards Bay to Shakaskraal, near KwaDukuza, experienced a tyre burst. The incident caused the driver to lose control of the vehicle and veer down an embankment,” said MEC Duma.
He commended the coordinated efforts of the rescue teams involved in the operation, including the Road Traffic Information (RTI) team, traffic departments, fire and disaster teams from Mandeni and KwaDukuza, and the South African Police Service (SAPS).
“The team conducted a very complicated search and rescue operation due to the steep embankment and thick bush. The operation was completed at 11.30pm on Sunday, and no victim was found left in the wreckage,” MEC Duma said.
He noted that the incident occurred just as the province was finalising its Road Safety Plans ahead of the Easter holidays. On Monday, March 10, MEC Duma visited the site of the crash, which was located approximately 100m down the embankment along the N2.
The wreckage was retrieved and transported to the RTI offices in Gingindlovu to facilitate investigations by the SAPS, Road Traffic Management Corporation, and RTI.
“This is a difficult period for the Twelve Apostles Church in Trinity in KwaZulu-Natal and South Africa as a whole. We pray to God to shine his face on the families, relatives, church members and those who were injured,” said MEC Duma. “The department will be in touch with all families and the leadership of the church. We want to ensure that the victims are given a dignified funeral.”