Driver arrested after crashing into tree while carrying 13 children

The driver of the vehicle which collided with a tree on Monday while transporting pupils in Soweto has been arrested.

The MMC of Public Safety in the City of Johannesburg‚ Michael Sun‚ visited the 13 children who had to be hospitalised after the vehicle they were travelling in collided with a tree in Meadowlands‚ Soweto‚ at about 6am.

Six of the children were admitted at Chris Hani Baragwaneth‚ one in Tshepo Themba Private Hospital‚ the other five at Koos Hospital.

The five admitted at Koos Hospital had been discharged‚ however the two at Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital remained in a critical condition‚ Sun said.

He confirmed that police had arrested the driver of the vehicle.

“The driver has subsequently been arrested for reckless‚ negligent and drunk driving. Open bottles of alcohol were found in the vehicle‚” he said.

Sun added: “Our thoughts and prayers are with the families of these children. This is a tragic incident that should never have happened. As a caring City‚ we will invest every effort into ensuring that incidents of this nature become a thing of the past.”

The MEC of Community Safety in Gauteng Sizakele Nkosi-Malobane expressed shock at the accident.

“The learner transport accident that took place this morning in Soweto is shocking‚ more so after a number of learner transport initiatives the department undertook with transport operators and parents in recent times…I will ensure that we intensify our road safety strategies to deal with the series of accidents in Gauteng. I wish all learners involved in the accident a speedy recovery and our thoughts are with their families‚” said Nkosi-Malobane.