Girl, 8, survives horror bus crash which killed other 45 people on board
A passenger bus has plunged from a bridge in South Africa, killing at least 45 people.
Only one child, an eight-year-old girl, survived the tragedy near Mamatlakala in Waterberg municipality, Limpopo province.
The driver reportedly lost control of the bus, colliding with the bridge barriers before the bus went over.
It fell 165 feet before catching on fire when it hit the ground, the transport ministry said.
The passengers were travelling from Botswana’s capital Gaborone to an Easter service in the town of Moria, roughly seven hour journey on the road.
Rescue operations continued until the late hours of Thursday evening, as some bodies were burned beyond recognition, others trapped inside the debris and scattered on the scene, Limpopo’s Department of Transport said in a separate statement.
The passenger bus was on its way from Botswana and it reportedly had a Botswana licence plate, but the nationalities of the victims are being checked.
Except the child, all passengers and the driver were killed after the bus plunged into the ravine.
Transport minister Sindisiwe Chikunga visited the crash scene.
She said a full inquiry would be held into the cause of the accident.
President Cyril Ramaphosa appealed to South Africans to take care on the roads during the Easter.
He said in a statement posted on X just hours before the crash: ‘Let’s do our best to make this a safe Easter. Easter does not have to be a time where we sit back and wait to see statistics on tragedy or injuries on our roads.’
The accident reportedly happened at the Mmamatlakala Bridge between Marken and Mokopane, around 190 miles north of Johannesburg.
The country’s roads continue to claim lives.
According to the Road Traffic Management Corporation, 12,436 people died in road incidents in 2022, with 43% being pedestrians.
In February last year, 20 people were killed and another 68 injured after a tour bus fell off a bridge into a river in the South African town of Louis Trichardt.
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