Four people were killed and several others critically injured in two accidents in the Stellenbosch area, Western Cape paramedics said on Monday.
The accidents occurred seven hours apart and within 10km of one another on Sunday, ER24 spokesperson Vanessa Jackson said.
On the R44 just after the Klapmuts turn off around 22:00, a woman driving out of Stellenbosch collided head-on with a bakkie without a canopy transporting 16 people, most of whom were sitting in the back.
“Most of the occupants were flung from the bakkie. Three people died at the scene. The other 13 had sustained critical to serious injuries, and one of whom died in hospital later last night.”
The woman driving the car sustained minor injuries and was taken to hospital by ambulance.
In the second accident a minibus taxi rolled on the R44, Strand Road, in Stellenbosch around 15:00, critically injuring a six-year-old boy.
“The taxi was carrying mostly woman, and their children. One young boy, aged six, needed to be airlifted from the scene due to the severe injuries he had sustained.”
The other patients sustained “moderate to critical injuries” and were taken to surrounding hospitals by ambulance.
– SAPA