3 men die, 1 hurt in smash on pass

Cape Town 140128- Accidenton Sir Lowry's pass. Three people died when a BMW tried to make a U-turn then hit a bakkie. Picture Cindy waxa.Reporter Daneel/Argus

Cape Town 140128- Accidenton Sir Lowry's pass. Three people died when a BMW tried to make a U-turn then hit a bakkie. Picture Cindy waxa.Reporter Daneel/Argus

Published Jan 28, 2014

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Cape Town - Three people were killed in another horror crash on Sir Lowry’s Pass this morning after the driver of one car apparently tried to do a U-turn on a bend.

The crash occurred at the sharpest bend on the steep pass and involved a Toyota Hilux and a BMW sedan. The Toyota was travelling down the pass in the direction of Cape Town when it hit the BMW side-on. The BMW was apparently travelling from Cape Town when the driver attempted to make a U-turn and drive back towards Somerset West just before impact.

All three occupants of the BMW, men between the ages of 30 and 40, died. They have not yet been identified. The BMW belonged to a police officer but he was not in the car at the time of the collision, police said.

The driver and only occupant of the Toyota was taken to hospital in a critical condition.

Police forensic investigators were on the scene this morning and one lane was still closed to traffic at the time of publication.

Speaking from the scene, provincial traffic chief Kenny Africa said urgent intervention was needed to make the pass safer.

He will meet department officials and engineers this week to discuss options for reducing the risk of crashes. Reduced speed limits and a series of cameras were two of his off-the-cuff suggestions.

“We will do the necessary blood tests on the (deceased) driver of the BMW,” said Africa, adding there were a number of empty beer cans in the car.

He said the BMW had belonged to a police officer but it had been established that the officer was not in the vehicle.

“We can make interventions but we also have to appeal to motorists to take a positive approach.

“A mountain pass is always a dangerous stretch of road and drivers need to absolutely ensure that they stick to the speed limit and not (take) any risks when overtaking,” Africa said.

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