16 people feared dead in Zambia's road accident

At least 16 people are feared dead in central Zambia's Chibombo district following a terrible accident involving a minibus driver and a truck, police told Xinhua on Tuesday.

The police said the minibus was coming from Kabwe town in central Zambia to Lusaka, the capital of the southern African country, when the driver lost control and collided with an oncoming truck before overturning.

The accident happened today around 06:30 hours along the Great North road when the driver of the bus lost control after a rear tyre burst and went on to hit into an on-coming truck and overturned.

The driver of the Volvo truck belonging to SABOC transport of Zimbabwe Reg. No. AAF 8926 and trailer No. 6767T Nathan Kambauwa aged 40 of Harare escaped unhurt.

The bodies of the deceased are lying in Liteta hospital mortuary while the injured are admitted in the University Teaching Hospital.

The bus was carrying 20 passengers, of whom 16 people died on the spot and the four others were seriously injured, according to witnesses.

The driver of the minibus only identified as Costa is among the dead.

The other deceased persons comprising of eight males and eight females have not yet been identified.

The injured have been evacuated to the University Teaching Hospital, the country's largest referral hospital in Lusaka. Zambia Police Deputy Spokesperson Charity Munganga said, "I can confirm that we have received reports of an accident involving a minibus and a truck but details will be availed to you later," she said.

Police Spokesperson comfirmed the tragedy in a statement and appealed to members of the public whose relatives were travelling from Kabwe to Lusaka this morning using the involved minibus to help with the identification of the bodies.

The accident occurred on the same spot where 54 people traveling in a big bus perished recently in a collision with a truck. Road crashes are common in Zambia and are mainly caused by careless driving and the poor state of roads.

Wednesday 1 May 2013

http://www.shanghaidaily.com/article/article_xinhua.asp?id=139648

http://www.lusakatimes.com/2013/04/30/another-chibombo-accident-claims-16-lives-on-the-spot/