KWAZULU-NATAL - KZN DA leader Zwakele Mncwango had to suspend campaigning in the Midlands after he was involved in a car crash early yesterday morning.
He was on his way to the party’s Durban offices in Umbilo Business Park when the crash took place.
It is not clear what caused the accident, but DA campaign spokesperson Hlanganani Gumbi said Mncwango’s was the only vehicle involved and no other injuries were reported.
“He is being attended to by doctors after paramedics assessed him at the scene,” he said.
Gumbi confirmed that Mncwango would not attend yesterday’s party campaign drives in KwaMashu, Pietermaritzburg, Howick and Mpophomeni.
“He is still on the phone with us constantly and is a part of it all, but he is just not physically there,” Gumbi said.
Mncwango’s accident was one of several crashes that took place across the province at the weekend, resulting in the deaths of nine people.
Yesterday, Rescue Care spokesperson Garrith Jamieson said two people had been killed and two others injured when the vehicle they were travelling in overturned and landed on its roof on the M19 Durban-bound.
He said four occupants were thrown from the vehicle while it was rolling.
“Two occupants, a male and a female, sustained major injuries and were declared deceased at the scene.
“Two other occupants sustained moderate injuries and were stabilised by paramedics before being transported to hospital,” Jamieson said.
An hour later, in a separate accident, a pedestrian was killed after a vehicle lost control and rolled, crashing into him at the Bayview off-ramp on the M1 Higginson Highway, Jamieson said.
“Rescue Care Paramedics arrived to find the severely damaged car and the pedestrian lying on the grass bank.
“Paramedics assessed the pedestrian and found that there was nothing more they could do for him and he was declared deceased.
“The driver sustained minor injuries and was treated at the scene,” said Jamieson.
On Saturday, an alleged drunk driver lost control of his vehicle and drove his car into five homeless people who were sleeping under a bridge in Pinetown, killing one.
“One male, who was believed to be in his twenties, was declared deceased at the scene,” said Jamieson.
Police spokesperson Lieutenant-Colonel Thulani Zwane said a case of culpable homicide had been opened at Pinetown police station.
“The driver was also charged with drunken-driving and will appear in the Pinetown Magistrate’s Court today,” he said.
Netcare 911 spokesperson Shawn Herbst reported that just before 11am on Saturday, two people were killed in Pietermaritzburg.
“Sadly, two people died in a collision and another six people sustained injuries ranging from minor to serious,” he said.
IPSS Medical Rescue spokesperson Paul Herbst said three people had been killed and three were critically injured when two light motor vehicles collided on the N2 near Zinkwazi on Saturday.
He said the high-impact collision left the occupants of both vehicles trapped.