By Claudine Senekal
Transport Minister, Fikile Mabula, expressed his heartfelt condolences to the Deputy Minister of Transport, Sindisiwe Chikunga, who tragically lost six family members in a horrific crash just outside the Model Kloof turn-off along the N11 on Sunday evening, 17 July.
“I have learned with a deep sense of sadness about the passing of Deputy Minister of Transport, Sindisiwe Chikunga’s eldest son, his wife and their four children,” said Minister Mabula during a media briefing at the scene of the crash on Wednesday morning, 20 July.
It is reported that the vehicle was involved in a head-on collision with another vehicle whose driver sustained serious injuries and is currently in hospital. Emergency services, SAPS, ER24 Ladysmith, KZNEMS, Alfred Duma Municipal officials from Search and Rescue and RTI officials were called to the scene. “This is another heartbreaking scene,” said officials on the scene, who told The Ladysmith Herald that they cannot believe that this is the third fatal collision to occur on the N11 over the weekend.
The N11 death toll, from Saturday evening, has since risen to 14 after three separate incidents. Six had passed away on Saturday evening at Mwela Wela. In later news, two people were killed in a head-on collision with a truck along Newcastle Road, N11, on Monday evening, 18 July. The N11 between Ladysmith and Newcastle has been described as one of KZN’s most dangerous roads.
Deputy Minister of Transport, Sindisiwe Chikunga, who hails from Estcourt, has been left in a state of shock and, in a press release, has pleaded for space and privacy until the full facts are established before further comments are made.
RTI KZN Spokesperson, Zinhle Mngomeszulu, confirmed that the stretch of road is a high accident zone and said the accident had nothing to do with the condition of the road. “The accidents are mainly due to motorists’ failure to comply with the rules of the road. Road safety is a shared responsibility, but some motorists seem to believe that it is the responsibility of the traffic officers alone.”
Minister Mabula was accompanied by national investigators, the Pietermaritzburg Collision Unit, RTI, SAPS and a family representative to the scene of the crash, where he addressed several members of the media.
“The tragic loss of a son and his entire family has left us all numb with disbelief and pain. I have reached out to Deputy Minister Chikunga in this hour of sadness and conveyed my heartfelt condolences for her loss. While words do little to console a bleeding heart and pain, I trust that she will find comfort in our support and strength to honour the memory of her son, daughter-in-law and grandchildren. Theirs are lives that were taken too soon, candles whose flames were extinguished in the prime of their lives,” said Minister Mabula.
He further added that he will work closely with investigators to ensure that the full cause of the crash is known.
