12 people killed in Shangani accident

SHANGANI – Twelve people were killed in an accident along the Gweru- Bulawayo high way on Wednesday when a bus was side swept by a truck. 

“Yes the accident occurred this afternoon near Shangani and 10 people died on the spot while two died on their way to hospital. The accident involved a Zebulon bus and a truck. The injured have been ferried hospitals in Bulawayo,”the Midlands police Spokesperson, Emmanuel Mahoko told The Zimbabwean Wednesday night.

The Shangani accident comes a month after another accident along the same road involving a Botswana registered bus, Jay-Jay Tours, lost control at a curve at Cement Siding and veered off the road, killing eight people on the spot.

Hundreds of Zimbabweans including some senior government leaders have perished in road accidents that experts have largely blamed on the poor state of the roads. Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai’s wife Susan Tsvangirai also perished in a car accident along Harare- Masvingo highway in March 2009.

Statistics from the Zimbabwe Traffic Police show that road accident fatalities have increased from 35 deaths per thousand accidents to 45 deaths per thousand accidents. According to the Ministry of Transport, 30 percent of the country’s roads require rehabilitation, while the remainder needs periodic maintenance.

Zimbabwe introduced tollgates in August 2009 as a way of mobilising resources for the rehabilitation and maintenance of the country’s road network, but not much has been achieved so far. The Zimbabwean