johannesburg - Crippling mist caused mayhem on Joburg’s roads on Monday morning with two people killed in an accident near the N12 on the Golden Highway and 32 others injured in a multiple vehicle pile-up on the same road.
The pile-up of six taxis, a truck, a bakkie and light motor vehicle created carnage and chaos along the Golden Highway in Bushkoppies between Eldorado Park and Lenasia, South of Joburg.
Joburg metro police department spokesman Chief Superintendent Wayne Minnaar said a truck had rear-ended a number of cars, which then hit other vehicles at about 7am.
In a separate accident not far from that scene, two people were killed and 12 others injured in an accident involving a minibus taxi and a light vehicle, said Emergency Management Services spokesman Robert Mulaudzi.
“Two people were pronounced dead on the scene when paramedics arrived,” he said.
The injured were stabilised and taken to nearby hospitals.
One of the taxis near the front of the pile-up was badly damaged with its front being totally crushed.
Mulaudzi said police were investigating the cause of the crash.
Monday morning’s mist was not limited to the Joburg area, with people tweeting about the same conditions in Pretoria, the Vaal and Witbank in Mpumalanga.
@NateMasibi tweeted: “Woke up this morning to some heavy mist and all that my godson could say was: SNOW… JHB is beautiful today!”
@modiehi_letsosa tweeted: “The mist in Joburg today is on fleek. Driving is a nightmare” – while @tlourunner wrote: “Hectic mist around Soweto, visibility very poor.”
Also tweeting from Soweto was @DamaraCEO, who wrote: “Soweto is covered under a thick cloud of mist. Drive safe and walk safer.”
@FatalMoves tweeted: “MIST MADNESS! – We can’t drive in rain! We can’t drive in mist! Many just can’t drive… Expect unskilled stupidity.”
@TrafficSA tweeted information of another pile-up between eMalahleni and Middleburg in Mpulalanga: “ATT: #MIST N4 Route, ROAD CLOSURE going in between eMalahleni and Middelburg due to heavy mist and multiple crashes.”
Earlier this month, a 16-car pile-up left 28 people injured in Benoni after heavy mist settled on Gauteng. The accident took place on the N12 West after the Tom Jones off-ramp.
In a separate accident on the same morning in Kempton Park, four people were injured with two in a critical condition after a collision between two vehicles on Great North Road.
In a third accident, in Springs, eight children and one adult were injured in a crash between a taxi and two other vehicles in Kingsway Road.
The Star