Brake failure suspected in oThongathi fatal bus crash: Dept

The KwaZulu-Natal Transport Department says it is alleged that the bus that plunged over a bridge in oThongathi, north of Durban, this morning, experienced brake failure shortly before the crash that killed three people.

Twelve other passengers have been injured, while one person is entrapped in the wreck.

Department Spokesperson Ndabe Sibiya says the bus was speeding as a result of the alleged brake failure and crashed into the railing of the bridge in an effort to avoid other vehicles.

Sibiya says disaster management teams, together with emergency services and police rescue teams, are on scene to deal with the crash. The R102 is still closed

Teams of officials are busy tracing the next of kin of those who have been killed or injured in the crash.

Onlookers have gathered at the scene.

Onlooker Zamokuhle Shezi says he rushed to the crash scene when he heard the sirens of emergency vehicles.

Shezi says, “I heard the sirens in the morning, maybe it was before six o’clock in the morning and it (was) continuous and I thought it was something urgent, and I came here to see what was happening. I just walked on the railway because I know on this side you can see clearly and I saw the bus lying on its side near the water, and it’s bad, very bad.”

VIDEO | Three people killed in a bus crash in oThongathi:



Injured

Emergency services say most of the people have been transported to hospital.

Preparations are underway to remove the bus, which is lying on its side next to the uThongathi River.

IPSS rescue worker Ian Sunnasy says many emergency services responded after receiving the call about the crash.

He says, “If you look on top of the bridge, we have a breakdown that’s there, waiting to recover the vehicle. So we got the call stating that a vehicle lost control and went down the bridge into the river embankment, and the call was brought to us and many services responded to the area. There were a lot of paramedics and firefighters on the scene, helping out.”- Additional reporting by Khalesakhe Mbhense.