An illegal U-turn is believed to have caused a major accident with 24 casualties involving a bus and two trucks near the Tugela toll plaza along the N3 on Thursday.
A road traffic inspectorate (RTI) team reported the crash took place around 3am when a south-bound truck and a bus collided with another truck which had allegedly made an illegal U-turn.
The injured were transported to Ladysmith provincial hospital.
“We thank God that 29 other passengers were not injured. There were 53 passengers in total,” said transport and human settlements MEC Siboniso Duma.
Duma said the driver, who was arrested, claimed he needed to look for money to pay the Tugela toll plaza fee.
He said newly appointed head of the department, Zibusiso Dlamini, is working with both RTI and Operation Shanela teams as part of an investigation with police and home affairs to establish if the driver was in the country legally.
We will be intensifying our #NenzaniLaEzweni operation on the N3 and N2, focusing on trucks. We have also resolved to sustain our operations at more than 17 weighbridges across all corners of the province
— Siboniso Duma, KZN transport and human settlements MEC
He said the department was on a campaign to ensure truck owners and their drivers were operating legally on the roads.
“The RTI team recently intercepted and impounded more than 17 trucks with fake documents. On November 27 an undocumented Zimbabwean truck driver was arrested by the RTI after his truck plunged into four trucks and a Polo.”
The horrific accident took place in Mariannhill toll plaza a few minutes after another accident involving a truck with failed brakes. The truck smashed into three trucks, a minibus, a taxi, and an SUV, and left 12 people injured.
Since the launch of the department’s #NenzaniLaEzweni Operation, more than 25 undocumented foreign national truck drivers have been arrested.
Some have been deported after serving sentences, while others remain in prison in Pietermaritzburg.
“We will be intensifying our #NenzaniLaEzweni operation on the N3 and N2, focusing on trucks. We have also resolved to sustain our operations at more than 17 weighbridges across all corners of the province,” Duma said.
TimesLIVE
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