At-least 53 people were killed after a truck laden with mealie-meal crashed into a Lusaka-bound Post Bus yesterday in one of the most horrific accidents on the highway.
The 72-seater bus, registration number ABV 4020 from Ndola, crashed at 07:30 hours, claiming 53 lives and leaving several injured.
At least 14 injured passengers were rushed to medical centres. Among the dead is Zambia Daily Mail acting production manager Charles Kauseni’s older brother, Henry.
Mr Kauseni said his 58-year-old brother, a father of six, was travelling from Ndola to Lusaka for some family issues when he met his fate.
Liteta medical superintendent Chisha Kalonde said out of the 14 survivors, six have been referred to the University Teaching Hospital (UTH) in Lusaka, seven to Kabwe General Hospital and one to Ndola Central Hospital.
The survivors were dumbfounded by shock.
Cheelo Hamweete, a 39 year-old survivor, said: “I can’t remember exactly what happened…. all I know is that I was with my brother-in-law and I don’t even know where he is.”
Mr Hamweete said he was travelling on the Post Bus from Mpongwe to Lusaka.
Another survivor, 22-year-old Mcferrin Bwalya, said he was in the company of his uncle and cousin Gill, a grade 11 pupil.
“We were on our way from Mufulira …. That’s all I can remember. I don’t know where my uncle and cousin are,” he said.
Mr Bwalya complained of pain on his right hand and appealed to medical personnel to help him get better.
“I am a driver and my hand is my life. If I can’t use it anymore, I will be useless,” he said as he winced in pain.
Security personnel had a tough time trying to prevent villagers from looting mealie-meal on the truck and other goods on the bus.
The accident involved a Congolese-registered truck registration number 1792 AB05. The truck belongs to Hermis Transport.
Ms Kanjela said the bodies, including those of both drivers, are lying in the Liteta Mission Hospital and Kabwe General Hospital mortuaries. By afternoon, some bodies had been taken to UTH mortuary.
“The accident happened when a Toyota Land Cruiser overtook a convoy of vehicles and the oncoming truck tried to avoid it. In the process, the truck collided with the Lusaka-bound bus.
“So far, I can confirm that 53 people from the bus and the truck are dead,” Ms Kanjela said.
Eye witness Lighton Malichanga said the driver of the Land Cruiser was apprehended and whisked away from the scene for his own safety.
It is believed that the driver was rushing to feed his pigs at a nearby farm.
And Colonel Kaunda, who described the accident as a national tragedy, said the carnage is an eye-opener to Government to prepare for calamities.
“What we have found here shows that we are ill-equipped to handle emergencies. We have been here for four to five hours and nothing has happened,” he said in reference to clearing the accident scene.
He said it is unfortunate that the accident has happened at a time when Government agencies have intensified sensitisation on road safety.
Col Kaunda said it is sad that some drivers can be so careless to cause such a horrendous accident which has claimed many lives at a go.
The truck was broken into bits and pieces while the 72-seater bus was extensively mangled.
And hundreds of vehicles travelling to and from Lusaka were marooned at the accident scene as the wreckages blocked the highway.
Earlier, police and Zambia Army officers rushed to the scene to provide security as locals attempted to loot bags of mealie-meal and other valuables from the dead.
Zambia Army officers from Kabwe finally managed to remove the wreckage from the scene.
And KATEBE CHENGO reports that ZAMPOST has expressed sadness at the loss of the 53 passengers.
Post Master General McPherson Chanda has also appealed to members of the public in Ndola whose relatives travelled on the morning bus yesterday to verify the status of their relatives.
“We have had people coming through to check in our data base for names of their relatives and I would like to appeal to more people to come forth.
“ZAMPOST wishes to assure all the bereaved families and injured that we stand with them in this period of sorrow and we regret the accident,” he said.