Relatives of the deceased yesterday identified some of the bodies that were being kept at the Diepkloof mortuary, Soweto.
Emotions ran high at mortuary as distraught relatives went through the gut-wrenching process of looking at the bodies.
Johannes Dumba, who lost his wife Gladys Maphisa in the crash said he still could not accept that it was his wife who was lying in the mortuary. “I feel hopeless, I feel helpless, my body is weak. When I called her on Monday and she did not answer the phone I knew something was wrong. “I went to Sebokeng hospital and then to Natalspruit (in Katlehong) and to Baragwanath hospital but I could not find her,” said Dumba.
He and his wife had been married for more than 20 years and they have four children and three grandchildren. Another mourner, Linda Thibetsane, 31, had come to look for his mother, Jane Thibatsane.
Sadly, he found her body in the mortuary among many others. Thibatsane said he last saw his mother last week when she came to nurse his sick child. “She was a pillar of strength, she brought me and my cousins up,” he lamented. Thibatsane said his mother was supposed to be starting a new job yesterday after being unemployed for a long time.
Two families came out of the mortuary with deeper sadness on their faces as they could not find their loved ones there. But Victoria Sicina found her friend Vicky Banya, 59, among the dead. Sicina said she decided to look for her friend, who had no family in Johanesburg. “When her lights did not come on last night I became worried. I could not even sleep. “I am sad that after looking so hard I found her here but at least I can have closure,” she said.
Meanwhile, the Putco bus company yesterday said its own investigations into the crash were under way, but it insisted the bus was roadworthy.
Raphiri Matsaneng, Putco spokesperson said: “It is believed the driver came across a service delivery protest and opted for an alternative route. The driver was speeding trying to make up time but unfortunately he met with a horrific accident.” Matsaneng said the investigations are underway to determine the exact cause of the crash.
He claimed Putco tests its buses twice a year, which is more than what is required by the department of transport. “We have 1200 buses in Limpopo, Mpumalanga and Gauteng and 3000 drivers who undergo intense training for six months before they get employed. “Even when the drivers go on leave when they come back they are required to undergo training again,” said Matsaneng.
Cosatu spokesperson Patrick Craven called for “a thorough investigation by the transport department”. “We need to establish among other things whether the bus was roadworthy or overloaded. “This disaster underlines yet again the need for a safe, efficient and affordable public transport system,” said Craven.
Transport Minister Ben Martins has instructed transport authorities to get to the bottom of the cause of the bus crash. “There are no words to describe the shock with which we received the reports of this tragic end to lives. We wish to convey our sincere condolences to the families of passengers who lost their lives, and wish survivors a speedy recovery,” said Martins.
Putco accidents
December 2000: 13 people were left dead near Pretoria on the infamous Moloto Road. The accident also left 27 people injured.The accident occurred when a Putco bus collided with a minibus taxi near Kameeldrift. Investigations revealed that the bus driver lost control of the vehicle when he overtook the minibus taxi and collided with another Putco bus in rainy conditions.
April 2006: 113 people were injured in a four-bus pile-up north of Pretoria. The accident happened at the Putco depot where three buses had stopped when the fourth one hit another bus from behind, creating a domino effect of crashes.
November 2011: Nine ZCC members travelling in a Putco bus from church prayer meeting in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe died when their bus was involved in an accident on the N1 between Botlokwa and Polokwane. Most victims were travelling to their homes in KZN. In another accident on the same day, a Putco bus carrying members of ZCC from Tembisa in Gauteng collided with a Nissan Sentra sedan. The driver of the car died on the spot while the bus driver and his passengers escaped unharmed. It was alleged the driver of the bus was driving in the wrong lane.
March 2012: Two people died when a Putco bus bus drove into an RDP house in Bramfischerville, Soweto. The dead couple were sleeping at the time. About 44 passengers were hospitalised.
June 2012: 19 people died while 52 were injured in a horrific bus accident. The bus was travelling from Sebokeng when it plummeted off a bridge in Meyerton in the Vaal area. The driver had apparently lost control of the vehicle.
Wednesday 27 June 2012
http://www.thenewage.co.za/54594-1007-53-11_bus_victims_identified
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