Online Reporter
Thupeyo Muleya in Makhado, South Africa
THE physical identification of the bodies of 43 people who died in a bus accident last Sunday near Makhado in South Africa’s Limpopo Province, among them Zimbabweans and Malawians, is expected to begin on Monday following the completion of post-mortems by South African forensic experts.
Among the deceased are 36 adults and seven minors, while several other passengers sustained varying degrees of injuries.
By the end of the day yesterday, only three bodies were yet to be identified by relatives.
Officials from the Zimbabwean Government were still verifying the total number of those hospitalised in various medical facilities across the province.
The post-mortems are being conducted at Tshilidzini Hospital, after which all the bodies will be transferred to a mortuary at Siloam Hospital for collection by Doves Funeral Parlour ahead of repatriation to Zimbabwe.
The tragedy occurred along the N1 highway near Makhado, when a bus belonging to DNC Coaches, travelling from Port Elizabeth to Harare with 91 passengers, veered off the road and plunged into an embankment.
The Civil Protection Unit (CPU) is funding the transportation, accommodation and general upkeep of relatives who have travelled to Makhado to assist with the identification process.
In addition, DNC Bus Company, the owners of the vehicle, is complementing the Government’s efforts by transporting relatives within South Africa and assisting those discharged from hospitals to return to Zimbabwe.
The identification exercise is being coordinated jointly by Zimbabwean, Malawian and South African authorities, working closely with bereaved families.
A senior official at the Zimbabwe Consulate in Johannesburg, Chengetai Murahwa, said by the end of the day yesterday, they had confirmed 32 Zimbabweans among the deceased.
He said eight others were Malawians, while the identity of the seven minors would be confirmed through DNA testing.
“A total of 34 post-mortems have been carried out as of midday on Friday, and we expect the remainder to be completed by the weekend. So, we expect relatives to start the physical identification at the mortuary on Monday,” said Murahwa.
“The Government has made arrangements to transport and accommodate all the relatives who will be coming to help with that process.”
Murahwa added that well-wishers had donated food hampers to patients admitted at Elim Hospital in Limpopo, while the consulate staff was consolidating the number of those still hospitalised and those discharged.
“Among other things, the Government of Zimbabwe is assisting the families with the repatriation process, paying medical bills for those hospitalised and providing transportation for those assisting with related processes,” said Murahwa.
“Through the Civil Protection Unit, the Government has created two command centres in Makhado and Beitbridge to coordinate logistics. We are happy with the support we are getting from various stakeholders so far.”
DNC Coaches operating supervisor, Oliver Govha, said the company was working closely with the Government to assist both the injured and bereaved families.
“In addition to what our Government is doing, guided by them, we are helping with the necessary consumables for those hospitalised and family members travelling within South Africa to complete the identification and repatriation processes,” said Govha.
“We will also visit all grieving families before and after burial to render any necessary support. We are also assisting Malawians with transport home once they are discharged from the hospital.”
South Africa’s Transport Ministry spokesperson, Mr Collen Msibi, said they had received a preliminary report about the accident, which would guide further investigations and possible policy action.
The fatal crash, which occurred on October 5, has been described as one of the worst road disasters involving cross-border transport between Zimbabwe and South Africa in recent years.
