A routine school run turned into a scene of unimaginable tragedy on Monday morning in Vanderbijlpark. Thirteen young lives were lost, and five other pupils are fighting for their lives in hospital, following a catastrophic collision between a private scholar transport minibus and a side tipper truck on Fred Droste Road.
Preliminary reports from the scene paint a devastatingly familiar picture: the minibus driver allegedly attempted an overtaking manoeuvre and failed to see the oncoming truck, resulting in a violent head-on impact. The minibus driver is also receiving medical care, while the condition of the truck driver remains unconfirmed.
Leaders Respond to Profound Loss
The Gauteng Department of Education confirmed the heartbreaking toll. MEC for Education Matome Chiloane, who visited the grim site, called it “a tragic day for us as the Department and the province.”
“It really is a tragic day for us as the Department and the province,” a visibly shaken Chiloane stated. “We extend our deepest condolences to the learners, families, and school communities affected. We call for greater vigilance when it comes to scholar transports, particularly private scholar transport.”
The tragedy resonated at the highest level of government. President Cyril Ramaphosa expressed his profound sadness, noting the cruel coincidence that the crash occurred on the same day the South African Human Rights Commission published a report on scholar transport safety in another province.
“Our children are the nation’s most precious assets and we must do all we can from observing the rules of the road to the quality of service providers appointed to transport scholars to protect learners,” President Ramaphosa said. He pledged that national and provincial authorities would provide psychosocial support to the grieving families and school communities.
A Legal Reckoning Begins
As the community reels, a legal process is underway. Police spokesperson Colonel Mavela Masondo confirmed that 13 counts of culpable homicide have been opened, with more charges likely as the investigation unfolds. The crash spotlights, yet again, the perennial and deadly crisis of scholar transport safety in South Africaa system where the daily journey to school remains a perilous gamble for thousands of children.
The names of the victims are yet to be released, but the emptiness in thirteen classrooms today speaks volumes. A nation is left to grapple with a painful question: when will the road to education stop being a road to death?
