At least forty-five passengers died on Thursday when a bus conveying them crashed through a barrier of a bridge in South Africa.
Only an eight-year-old child reportedly survived accident with multiple injuries.
The bus, which crashed through a barrier of a bridge, caught fire after it fell off a bridge approximately 300km north of Johannesburg in the Northeastern Limpopo province.
The passengers were said to be pilgrims travelling from Botswana’s capital Gaborone to an Easter service in the town of Moria.
The vehicle lost control and went off a bridge on the Mmamatlakala mountain pass between Mokopane and Marken, around 300km (190 miles) north of Johannesburg, according to South African public broadcaster SABC.
Speaking with reporters after visiting the scene, South Africa’s Minister of Transportation, Sindisiwe Chikunga, disclosed in statement that the government will carry out an investigation to determine the cause of the accident.
“Our thoughts and prayers are with you during this difficult time.
“We continue to urge responsible driving at all times with heightened alertness as more people are on our roads this Easter weekend,” Chikkunga said.
In the statement, the nation’s transport ministry, claimed that the bus driver is believed to have lost control of the vehicle. It said this caused the bus to go over the bridge and hit the ground, catching fire.
“It is alleged that the driver lost control, colliding with barriers on the bridge causing the bus to go over the bridge and hitting the ground, where it caught fire,” it said.
In his Easter message to South Africans, President Cyril Ramaphosa called on citizens to “do our best to make this a safe Easter.”
