2 die after being flung out of taxi

2012-11-28 09:18

(File, ER24)

Johannesburg - Two minibus taxi passengers were killed in an accident on the N1 outside Soweto, paramedics said on Wednesday.

ER24 spokesperson Vanessa Jackson said the taxi was heading towards Lenasia on Tuesday night when it hit a steel barrier.

"It looks like it went from the slow lane all the way into the fast lane where it then collided with the barrier and this caused the taxi to roll, then coming to rest in the middle of the road lying on the driver's side," she said.

Paramedics who attended to the scene described it as "one of the worst" they had ever seen.

"There was a young woman, who appeared to have been in her late teens, whose body had been partially flung out of the taxi before it rolled on top of her," she said.

Her body had been crushed. She died on the scene. A man was also flung out of the taxi.

"He sustained fatal head injuries. Paramedics found him at the back of the taxi also partially underneath the vehicle," said Jackson.

Two other people suffered critical injuries. They were treated on the scene before being transported to the Chris Hani Baragwanath hospital. Eleven others were treated for minor to serious injuries and were transported to various hospitals.

- SAPA