Two die in bus accident - several injured

Two people have died and more than 30 people were injured in an accident involving a minibus and a bus at the intersection of Nelson Mandela Avenue and Konkoit Street in Lephalale early Tuesday morning.
The minibus was transporting eleven MPS JV employees, when a Lowveld Bus Services 65-seater bus transporting Aveng-LTA employees working at the Mokolo Pipeline Project crashed into the side of it. The Lephalale police and emergency services were quick on the scene where one of the passengers in the minibus was declared dead. The other passenger died in hospital.
According to a police report the driver of the LBS bus told police that the brakes of the bus failed as it approached the intersection. Northern News spoke to Lowveld Bus Service general manager, Dirk Heyns, who said preliminary test show that the brakes were in working condition. He added that skid marks at the scene also indicate that the brakes were working.
Eskom and MPS JV issued a statement on Wednesday saying that seven of the injured employees have been discharged from hospital with minor injuries; two have sustained serious injuries but are currently stable at the Ellisras Hospital.
About 25 Aveng Grinaker-LTA employees, who were on the bus at the time of the accident, sustained minor injuries and were discharged the same day at the MPS-JV Clinic in Lephalale.
MPS-JV contacted families of the critical injured employees who are being offered assistance with counselling, accommodation and transport. “All other affected staff members and their families will be offered counselling by MPS-JV. The safety of everyone at Eskom’s Medupi project are of primary importance,” the statement added. A case of culpable homicide was opened against the driver of the bus at the Lephalale police station.