Kombi driver flees school accident scene

POLICE in Bulawayo have launched a manhunt for a yet-to-be-identified Tshova Mubaiwa kombi driver who fled the scene soon after ramming his vehicle into the Mpopoma High School precast wall and a fowl run.

The incident occurred yesterday shortly before 8 am.

The kombi, which plies the City-Cowdray Park route, was coming from the city centre with four passengers.

Bulawayo provincial police spokesperson, Inspector Abednico Ncube said they are investigating circumstances that led to the driver fleeing the scene.

“We are investigating circumstances leading to an accident involving a Tshova Mubaiwa Kombi today (yesterday). Our officers are keen to interview the driver of the Kombi, who disappeared from the scene of the accident,” he said.

“He will face negligent driving charges and we appeal to members of the public who may know of his whereabouts to contact any nearest police station.”

When the Chronicle news crew arrived at the scene yesterday, an ambulance was ferrying the injured passengers and the conductor to hospital while stunned onlookers including Mpopoma High School teachers and learners stood in shock.

A security guard at the school, Mr Patrick Mahachi, who witnessed the accident, said there were four passengers onboard the kombi.

“I saw the Kombi flying towards the precast wall and I rushed to the scene and found that one of the four passengers had sustained a broken leg. What is surprising me is the speed at which the driver vanished into thin air,” said Mr Mahachi.

Bulawayo chief fire officer, Mr Nhlanganiso Moyo said the team that attended the scene remained on standby until the Kombi was towed away from the site.

“We attended to a road traffic accident early this morning at 7.40 am where a driver of a commuter omnibus heading towards Luveve lost control, veered off the road and hit a precast wall and a chicken run inside Mpopoma High School,” he said.

“Five persons were injured and taken to the hospital. Our crew removed the vehicle from the school taking into account that it could burst into flames.”

Yesterday’s mishap comes at a time when there is an ongoing debate on the proposed minimum age of driving public service vehicles (PSV), with the Minister of Transport and Infrastructural Development, Felix Mhona telling legislators last week that the Government was proposing to increase the minimum age from 25 years to 30 years,.

The position has the backing of the Zimbabwe Passenger Transport Organisation (ZPTO).

Minister Mhona also said there are also plans to deploy Closed Circuit Televisions (CCTVs) on streets to boost surveillance and introduce automated ticketing systems to minimise human involvement as it aims to establish a more secure and effective road safety management system.

According to the Traffic Safety Council of Zimbabwe, a road accident occurs in Zimbabwe every 15 minutes, with at least 150 people dying every month. In monetary terms, fiscus is losing about US$406 million annually in road accident-induced hospitalisations.