A passenger bus rolled down an embankment in South Africa, killing at least 42 people including workers from Malawi and Zimbabwe, authorities said Monday.
The bus was travelling to Zimbabwe when it crashed around 90 kilometres (55 miles) from the border on Sunday after the driver apparently lost control, Limpopo province transport minister Violet Mathye said.
“A reported 42 travellers died in the incident,” South Africa’s presidency said.
The dead included a 10-month-old girl, Mathye said.
Thirty-eight people were in hospital and rescuers were searching for other victims, she said.
President Cyril Ramaphosa called the crash a tragedy for all three nations and urged road users to do more to stay safe.
“This sadness is compounded by the fact that this incident has taken place during our annual transport month, where we place special focus on the importance of safety on our roads,” he said in a statement.
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The bus was travelling from the southern city of Gqeberha, around 1,500 kilometres away, and its passengers included Malawians and Zimbabweans who were working in South Africa.
The crash may have been caused by driver fatigue or a mechanical fault, the minister said.
South Africa has a sophisticated and busy road network with a high rate of road deaths, blamed mostly on speeding, reckless driving and unroadworthy vehicles.
Last year, 45 people died when a bus carrying mostly Botswana nationals to an Easter church gathering plunged into a ravine in northeastern Limpopo province. An eight-year-old girl was the sole survivor.
