WATCH | Girl (13) starting high school among pupils who died in crash

What was meant to be 13-year-old Bokamoso Mokhobo’s first day of high school yesterday turned to tragedy as the teenager died before getting to school when her scholar transport driver collided with a truck while trying to overtake other vehicles.

Bokamoso is one of the 13 schoolchildren from Vaal High School, Vaal Primary School, Suncrest High School, El-Shaddai Christian School, Hoerskool Vanderbijlpark and Oliver Lodge Primary School who died after the minibus taxi they were in crashed into an oncoming truck in Vanderbijlpark. Four other children are in hospital.

Bokamoso’s cousin, Lesedi Mokhobo, said the Sebokeng girl was filled with excitement as she prepared for her first day at high school.

“She was so excited. Her mother told us that she was busy fixing her hair, asking if she looked fine, and said she couldn’t wait to go to school. It was her first day of high school and her first time using scholar transport,” Mokhobo said.

However, that excitement turned to tragedy when the family was informed of the deadly crash.

They rushed to the scene, where they were informed that Bokamoso was still breathing when emergency services arrived at the scene but succumbed to her injuries on the way to hospital.

Speaking at the scene, Gauteng traffic police spokesperson Sello Maremane said human error caused the devastating crash.

He said traffic authorities were alerted to the crash at about 6.50am. “The driver of the minibus taxi sustained minor injuries, while the truck driver was not injured. A passenger in the truck suffered slight injuries,” Maremane said.

According to preliminary investigations, the minibus driver attempted to overtake another vehicle and failed to notice an oncoming truck in the opposite lane, he said.

“The driver tried to overtake and did not realise that the articulated truck was approaching. When he attempted to return to the left lane, the minibus collided head-on with the truck,” Maremane said.

Another young victim, Letlotlo Makwe, a grade 2 learner from Vaal Primary School, was remembered as a lively and joyful child.

When her grandmother Dineo Schumann last saw her at about 6.20am boarding the same transport she had used since crèche, she did not know it would be the last time she would see her alive.

She was so excited... It was her first day of high school and her first time using scholar transport.

—  Bokamoso Mokhobo’s cousin, Lesedi Mokhobo

“She was an active child who loved beauty. Only God knows why my granddaughter had to die like this,” a devastated Schumann said.

At the Sebokeng mortuary, parents were overwhelmed with grief as they waited to identify their children and for answers as to how the tragedy happened.

Confess Nthoba, the mother of 13-year-old Lesedi Nthoba, described losing her only daughter among her sons as an unbearable blow. “She was my only girl,” Nthoba said. “I still can’t believe she is gone.”

One of the medical staff who was present when the pupils arrived, said the condition of many of the children made identification extremely difficult. “Some of them were unidentifiable because of the severity of their injuries,” she said.

Eyewitnesses at the scene alleged that the scholar transport driver attempted to overtake several vehicles before colliding head-on with the oncoming truck, tearing the taxi apart.

Maremane stressed that the crash highlights the urgent need to strengthen scholar transport safety measures.

“This is not the first accident involving school transport. We deploy traffic officers at schools daily and conduct vehicle inspections. We are calling on learner transport operators, bus operators and trucking companies to voluntarily bring their vehicles for testing so we can check critical components like brakes and windscreens,” he said.

However, Maremane acknowledged ongoing challenges with compliance.

“We are dealing with the human element. Almost 80% of crashes are attributed to human error. Unfortunately, some operators do not comply, and we have to enforce the law to ensure the safety of our learners.”

The Gauteng traffic inspectorate said they had an operation targeting scholar transport safety last week and that it yielded significant results.

The directorate said it found 57 minibuses operating without valid licence discs, 153 minibus drivers operating without valid driving licences and that 74 minibuses were discontinued for noncompliance.

Meanwhile, nine KwaZulu-Natal children were injured after the driver of their scholar transport vehicle lost control of it yesterday morning. The vehicle crashed into a tree near Sarnia Primary School in Pinetown, west of Durban.

Sowetan