Five injured after bakkies collide with an elephant

Five people were injured after two bakkies collided with an elephant on the R71, about 4km from Gravelotte, Limpopo. Picture: Supplied by ER24

Five people were injured after two bakkies collided with an elephant on the R71, about 4km from Gravelotte, Limpopo. Picture: Supplied by ER24

Published Mar 23, 2023

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Pretoria - Five people were injured after two bakkies collided with an elephant on the R71, about 4km from Gravelotte, Limpopo, on Wednesday.

ER24 said they arrived on the scene at 7.46pm to find an elephant lying in the road.

“Two bakkies were found a short distance away, roughly 50m apart. On closer assessments, medics found that four men and a woman had sustained minor to moderate injuries,” ER24 said in a statement.

The patients were treated and later transported to nearby hospitals for further medical care.

“Unfortunately, the elephant succumbed to its injuries. Local authorities were on the scene for further investigations,’’ read the statement.

In another accident, two people were killed and scores left injured after a bakkie overturned down a steep bank in the Bulwer area early on Wednesday morning.

Underberg Emergency Medical Services (UEMS) spokesperson Kate Bodmann said that at 12.15am, UEMS crews were contacted for a motor vehicle accident along the P422 in the vicinity of kwaMakhongwane Location, along the St Apollinaris Road.

Bodmann said that on arrival, UEMS paramedics found a single bakkie that had overturned down a steep embankment.

She said that reports indicated that the vehicle was carrying 10 occupants on the back of the bakkie. All 10 patients had been ejected and were found scattered in the veld.

“The driver and front-seat passenger were found to be entrapped in the vehicle and were extricated by local search and rescue,” Bodmann said.

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