AT least 12 people were killed yesterday evening in a head-on collision involving a Toyota Regius and a Nissan Caravan kombi along the Mutare-Chimanimani Road.

The accident happened about 15km out of Mutare soon after sunset when the Toyota Regius, which was travelling from Mutare, had a tyre burst resulting in the driver losing control.

The vehicle veered off its lane resulting in a head-on collision with the Nissan Caravan kombi which was coming from Bezel Bridge in Marange.

Manicaland provincial administrator and chairman of the Civil Protection Unit, Fungai Mbetsa confirmed the accident, saying they were rushing to the scene to get first hand information of what happened.

He said: “We’ve just received a report that there was an accident that happened along the Mutare-Chimanimani Road this evening (yesterday) involving two passenger vehicles. Details of what transpired are still sketchy, but we’re already activating all the systems.

“It’s so sad to lose lives in such a tragedy. We’ll give more details when we gather what really transpired. From the information I got from the police, eight people had been confirmed dead,” he said.

When our Mutare Bureau arrived at the accident scene, 12 bodies had been recovered from the wreckage and rescue efforts were underway. Bodies were strewn in nearby bushes and it was not clear how many people were aboard the two vehicles.

Members of the Mutare Fire Brigade, the police, passersby and villagers were searching for bodies around the area.

The 12 deceased were ferried to Mutare Provincial Hospital.

A witness said: “The Toyota Regius which was travelling from Mutare had a tyre burst and it veered off its lane. It encroached onto the lane of the Mutare-bound Nissan Caravan resulting in the head-on collision. We’re not sure if there are any survivors.

“It appears as if the two vehicles were speeding because the impact was just too much.

“We heard a loud bang and when we arrived here bodies were strewn all over the place. It’s a sorry sight as you can see. I believe there are more bodies in the bushes.

“There’s no one from the two vehicles to tell us what really happened. The only person who was writhing in agony is now silent and we believe is dead now.”

Mbetsa said: “As the Civil Protection Unit, we’ll recommend that this accident be declared a national disaster and see what form of assistance the bereaved families can get. I’ll be getting in touch with the national office on the way forward.

“We want to urge motorists especially those who carry passengers to be extremely cautious on the roads to avoid these tragedies.” Cletus Mushanawani  source-chronicle