EC bares brunt of deadly Van Reenen Pass, says Transport Dept
On Monday, a minibus taxi from Qumbu, Eastern Cape, collided with a truck on the Van Reenen Pass and claimed 17 lives.
The truck involved in a multi-vehicle collision that claimed 17 lives on Van Reenen Pass in KZN on 6 January 2025. Picture: @KZNTransport/X
JOHANNESBURG - The Eastern Cape Department of Transport said the death of the 17 people on Van Reenen Pass is a blow felt in the province.
Earlier this week, a minibus taxi collided with a truck in KwaZulu-Natal, leaving only one survivor, who is currently being treated in hospital.
Provincial transport spokesperson Unathi Binqose said although the accident occurred in KwaZulu-Natal, families in Eastern Cape will mourn the deaths of their loved ones.
On Monday, a minibus taxi from Qumbu, Eastern Cape, collided with a truck on the Van Reenen Pass.
The accident left only one survivor from the 18 passengers travelling in the taxi to Johannesburg from Eastern Cape.
Eastern Cape’s Department of Transport spokesperson, Unathi Binqose, said the holiday period has brought so much sadness to the province.
“The devastation this period has caused to a lot of families across the Eastern Cape is beyond measure, not just on crashes that have happened in our province, but even those that have happened beyond our borders, as illustrated by this recent accident on the N3 in KZN.”
It’s understood that the owner of the minibus taxi will make provisions for family members to travel to Ladysmith to identify their families.