N2 smash takes 12 lives as toll mounts in Eastern Cape

In less than 48 hours, 20 people were killed in four road accidents in the Eastern Cape this weekend.

The death toll for the three weeks since December 1 is more than 80.

Three of this weekend’s accidents were on the N2 and R61, regarded as among SA’s top 10 deadliest roads.

Authorities have blamed alcohol, fatigue and reckless and negligent driving as contributing factors.

The government has intensified its calls for motorists to exercise caution on the roads.

On Saturday, Eastern Cape transport department spokesperson Unathi Binqose said 11 people were killed and three seriously injured on the N2 near Nywarha village outside Dutywa at about 8pm.

A minibus taxi with 10 passengers and a bakkie with four passengers were involved in a head-on collision.

“In the bakkie, three occupants, all males, died at the scene. A female passenger sustained serious injuries. In the taxi, eight people died at the scene, four men and four women. Two people sustained injuries and were rushed to hospital,” Binqose said.

A case of culpable homicide was opened for investigation.

On Sunday he confirmed one of the passengers in the taxi had died in hospital, pushing the number of fatalities to 12.

Earlier on Saturday, three people were killed and others injured when a minibus taxi burst a tyre and overturned on the R61 between Nxuba and Graaff-Reinet. The injured people were rushed to hospital.

Five people died in two separate crashes. In the first, three people were killed in a head-on collision between a bakkie and a Toyota Avanza on the R409 between Ndabakazi and Ngqamakhwe. In the second, two people died when a car overturned on the N2 in Fort Jackson near Mdantsane, East London.

Cases of culpable homicide were opened in each of the incidents, Binqose said.

The weekend of horror comes days after 13 people were killed in a head-on collision between a SUV and minibus taxi on the N9 outside Graaff-Reinet last Monday. All six occupants in the SUV were killed instantly, along with seven passengers in the taxi.

In a media briefing last week, transport minister Barbara Creecy said: “We have a road safety problem in our country.”

She revealed 512 people had died on the roads since December 1. This is a 3% increase from the same period last year. In 2023, statistics showed 11,883 people had been killed in 10,180 fatal crashes. Of these, 5,360 were pedestrians. More that one fifth of the deaths — 21.3% — involved hit-and-run incidents, with alcohol and speeding significant contributors to road fatalities.

“There have been a number of multiple vehicle accidents with multiple fatalities. Many of these occurred in the early hours and we assume fatigue may have played a role because they involved head-on collisions,” she said.

“The department has set up more than 500 roadblocks and arrested 3,000 people since December 1.”

A third of the people arrested had been driving under the influence of alcohol, she said. Fatalities on the roads cost the economy more than R205bn in 2023 — or 2.74% of GDP.

Binqose said in the Eastern Cape, authorities count drunken driving as a huge factor in road carnage.

“When we talk of the human factor, we include consumption of alcohol. There are a number of accidents where we have reasonable grounds to believe alcohol could have been consumed before driving,” he said.

“Head-on collisions always tell the story that someone was on the wrong side of the road when the accident happened. There is error of judgment, in some instances, miscalculation of the speed needed or perhaps the distance to be covered while overtaking. Of course, there are other factors too. Take [for example] the accident where people died after a taxi’s tyre burst.”

Eastern Cape transport MEC Xolile Nqatha, while expressing condolences to the families who lost loved ones, called on traffic officers to do everything to help stop the carnage. 

“There is a greater responsibility on the driver to ensure we arrive alive,” he said.

Earlier this year Mbhashe municipality hosted a mass prayer and cleansing ceremony on the N2 near Nywarha village. The stretch clocked up 29 crashes in 2023. At the time mayor Samkelo Janda said there was a belief that angry spirits were causing havoc as they had never been repatriated to their homes after being killed on the road.

On Sunday Janda urged people, especially motorists, to be patient on the roads.

“This is a time when families should be rejoicing, people attending and hosting celebrations and generally having fun. Instead, they are in deepest mourning. It is always better to arrive late at your destination than never getting there at all,” he said.

Eastern Cape Liquor Board spokesperson Dr Mgwebi Msiya said they would continue to urge road users to refrain from driving under the influence. The number of fatalities was cause for concern and expressed condolences to families who had lost loved ones, he said.

“Liquor traders must ensure they do not sell alcohol to visibly drunk people who have to drive themselves home,” said Msiya.

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