Christmas carnage on Gauteng's roads

2011-12-25 09:03

Johannesburg - At least eight people were killed in accidents around Johannesburg and Pretoria on Saturday and Sunday.

Two people were killed when a car crashed into a bakkie in Cullinan, east of Pretoria on Saturday, metro police said.

Spokesperson Console Tleane said a Mercedes Benz was overtaking several cars when it crashed into a bakkie as it tried to avoid oncoming traffic. Two people in the bakkie were killed and two other people were in a serious condition in hospital.

Five other people sustained minor injuries.

Meanwhile, in Kurgersdorp West, a single cab bakkie appears to have been crushed after the driver allegedly lost control of the vehicle and it smashed into a tree off Rustenburg Road on Sunday morning. Two of the three men in the vehicle died at the scene, ER24’s Vanessa Jackson said.

Another accident in the Eastern area of Johannesburg left 2 people dead and another 3 with various injuries.

The first of the two accidents happened on Elgin Road in Kempton Park where two vehicles collided head-on. The cause of the accident is not known, but the 51-year-old woman driving one of the vehicles died despite efforts by paramedics to resuscitate her. The driver and only occupant of the second vehicle involved suffered minor injuries.

In the second incident, shortly before 21:00, a driver lost control of his car and it rolled into a field on a road between Heidelberg and Nigel. All 3 occupants were flung from the car, one of them dying instantly.

The other two men had sustained relatively serious injuries but were in a stable condition. They were taken to a nearby hospital for further care.

Two people were also killed when a taxi overturned in Parktown, Johannesburg.

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- SAPA