Authorities in KwaZulu-Natal are searching for a taxi driver who fled the scene after a vehicle carrying more than 20 learners plunged off a bridge in the Midlands, leaving most of the children seriously injured.
The incident, reported on Monday, is the third crash involving learner transport in the Umgungundlovu District in just five days. Last Thursday, three schoolchildren died in a separate accident, while several others remain in hospital.
KwaZulu-Natal Transport Department spokesperson Ndabezinhle Sibiya told state broadcaster SABC that the driver abandoned the injured children at the scene.
“Most disturbing is that the taxi driver disappeared, and law enforcement agencies are looking for him. Learners from Matomela High School, Luthando High School and Sthunjwana Primary School have been taken to Gomane Clinic and Harry Gwala Regional Hospital (Edendale Hospital),” Sibiya said.
He added that the department has called on the South African National Taxi Council in KwaZulu-Natal to convene an urgent meeting to address the spate of accidents linked to learner transport.
