Pretoria - Four people were killed instantly after the car they were travelling in was involved in a head-on collision with a truck on the R40 between Acornhoek and Bushbuckridge in Mpumalanga on Sunday.
The driver of the truck was unharmed.
Mpumalanga Community Safety and Security spokesperson Kingdom Mabuza said the driver of the sedan was apparently speeding.
“Although the probe into the crash is under way, it appears as if the sedan may have been moving at a high speed.
“This then led to the driver losing control and crashing into the truck, which was driving in the opposite direction.
“The sedan was completely ripped apart as the truck drove over it, and there was nothing that the emergency personnel who responded to the scene could have done to save the four.”
The Jaws of Life were used to remove the remains of the dead from the wreckage.
Mpumalanga MEC for Community Safety, Security and Liaison Vusi Shongwe called on motorists to respect and obey the rules of the road.
Shongwe said: “I urge road users to help make the road safer by driving with greater caution.
“Let us all come to the party and stop this carnage. Roads and transport are an integral part of our economy, and that is why the government is spending billions of rand to build and maintain these roads.
“A lot more is also spent on road safety initiatives. That is why it is so disheartening to lose so many people on the road.”
Car accidents are set to increase before the holiday season approaches, especially in Mpumalanga and Limpopo where there are tourist destinations.
Last week two people died on the notorious R573 road near Moloto after a bus overturned, killing the driver and a passenger instantly. The road was closed to clear the wreckage.
The bus was reportedly en route to Pretoria from Waterval.
Pretoria News