DURBAN - Four people were killed and five injured in a two-vehicle collision between Thornville and Pietermaritzburg on Saturday night.
Police spokesperson Lieutenant-Colonel Nqobile Gwala said Thornville SAPS are investigating a case of culpable homicide.
“It is alleged that on April 2, 2022, at 10pm, two vehicles collided head-on, on the R56 between Thornville and Pietermaritzburg, resulting in the death of the four occupants aged between 27 and 46. The five injured passengers were taken to the hospital for medical attention,” Gwala said.
Reporting on the incident, Mi7 National Group spokesperson Colin Davids said their emergency medical services were dispatched after reports of a motor vehicle crash on the R56 near Thornville.
Davids said Mi7 paramedics found that two light motor vehicles had collided head-on, entrapping multiple patients in the wreckage.
He said Mi7 rescue medics quickly assessed the scene and found that the driver of one vehicle had sustained serious injuries and was entrapped in the wreckage, while the passengers had managed to free themselves.
“The second vehicle had three occupants. Unfortunately, all three were deceased on arrival,” Davids said.
He said paramedics from multiple service providers worked together and the patients were treated and transported to multiple local hospitals.
Davids added that the Pietermaritzburg Fire Department arrived on the scene and with close co-ordination between Mi7 rescue medics and firefighters, the driver of the first vehicle entrapped in the wreckage was extricated after one hour.
The driver extricated from the wreckage was stabilised and transported to hospital by another service provider, Davids said.
He said a 19-year-old woman had to receive advanced life support interventions from Mi7 medics on the scene to stabilise her before she was placed on a mechanical ventilator and transported to a local hospital for further treatment.
Davids also said police and the Road Traffic Inspectorate were on the scene to assist with traffic control and to investigate the cause of the crash.
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