[24 December 2012]
A man has been killed and two other people have been injured in three separate motor vehicle accidents.
At around 5 am this morning, a man in his 30’s sustained injuries after he was ejected from the bakkie that he was driving on the N3. It appeared that for some reason the driver had lost control and no other vehicles had been involved in the incident. The bakkie rolled onto the middle island just near the Merrivale road off ramp in Howick, and the bakkie came to rest on its roof in the storm water drain.
The man was found to have been flung from the vehicle and had sustained chest injuries and various other suspected internal injuries. Along with the Advanced Life Support paramedic, the patient was transported to the St. Annes Hospital for further care.
At approximately 8 o clock this morning, Potchefstroom paramedics rushed out to attend to a motorbike accident that had taken place on the Schoemansdrift road, about 3 kilometers outside of the town of Potchesftroom. A young woman was traveling on her motorbike when she says that a buck suddenly ran across the road in front of her. She was unable to control the bike and she rolled off.
Luckily she had not collided into the animal, but because she had come off the bike with quite a severe force, she had sustained a broken collarbone and had multiple scrapes to her body and legs. Paramedics gave her medication to ease her pain, and the 22 year old was transported to the Potchefstroom Provincial hospital for further care.
Also around 8 am this morning, paramedics went out on the N17 between Bethal and Ermelo after there were reports that a car had left the road. When they arrived they found that a VW Golf had rolled almost 100 meters from the road and was lying on its side.
The only occupant who is believed to have been in the vehicle at the time sadly did not survive his injuries and it was determined that he had sustained a severe head injury and multiple broken bones in his legs. Paramedics declared the man who appeared to have been in his late 20’s deceased at the scene.
Vanessa Jackson, ER24