The army was called in to help after a horror crash on the KwaZulu-Natal North Coast left a teenage schoolboy dead and several more hurt on Tuesday.
IPSS Medical Rescue’s spokesperson, Paul Herbst, said a bakkie carrying 17 school children lost control on a rural road, between Mandeni and Eshowe, on Tuesday morning.
A 14-year-old had died, Herbst said, and six children were critically injured.
“Owing to the severity of the injuries and accessibility (the accident scene was almost two hours away from the closest hospital), the six critical patients were airlifted by the South African Airforce, using an Oryx helicopter,” Herbst said. “IPSS advanced life support paramedics worked to stabilise the patients on board the aircraft”.
The Air Mercy Service was also in attendance and assisted with airlifting patients to Ngwelezana Hospital in Empangeni.
Eight of the children in the bakkie sustained moderate injuries, while two of them were lucky to escape with only minor injuries.
The moderately injured children were transported by road to hospital for further care.