Fourteen (14) people have died in a fatal bus accident that happened last night along the Solwezi-Chingola road in Mushindamo district, in North-western Province.
North-western Province Commissioner of Police, Hudson Namachila, who confirmed the incident in a statement to media this morning, said the deceased include 11 adult males and three females.
Mr Namachila identified the deceased as Noble Nsofu, Alister Mtonga, Saviour Chungu Mulenga, Malon Chabala Kapembwa, Victor Khakeni, Boniface Chisala and four other unidentified males and three females.
He said 15 other passengers who sustained injuries are currently admitted in Solwezi General Hospital, while the bodies of the deceased have been deposited in the same hospital mortuary, awaiting postmortem.
Mr Namachila said the accident involving a Scorpion Bus Services that was travelling from Chingola to Solwezi occurred when the bus driver, identified as Eddie Katoyo, lost control of the bus due to excessive speed after overtaking several vehicles and hit into the rear part of a stationary broken down freight-liner truck and trailer.
The Police Commissioner also revealed that the accident happened around Emmanuel area which is about 60 kilometers east of Solwezi town, at about 19:17 hours.
Mr Nanachila added that the driver, will be charged with 14 counts of causing death by dangerous driving.
Meanwhile, North-western Province Minister, Nathaniel Mubukwanu who visited the accident scene expressed sadness at the loss of lives in the accident.
At around 22:00 hours a team of officers from the police, road traffic and safety agency, fire fighters, doctors and other medical staff, were still working to retrieve the bodies from the bus.
Mr Mubukwanu who described the accident as fatal later took time to visit Solwezi General Hospital where the injured passengers are admitted and are receiving treatment.
This is really sad. Why put so many lives in danger by recklessly overtaking at high speed in the night?
Because he wanted to beat the deadline of parking buses at 8pm.
Sometimes even us passengers encourage drivers that “natuchelwa”, “you are driving too slow, where are we going to sleep”.
And after overtaking successful they even clap for driver. Trip on Zambian buses is entertaining.
There was no need for speed, this driver was 60 km from the main station with 1 hr 33 minutes , even if he was driving at 60km/h he would have reached solwezi bus station before 21 hours, and am pretty sure if you are 30km from the main bus station of any town, traffic officers would understand and let you proceed to the next bus station. This accident is just pure lack of respect for human life.
Just look at that damage of that bus one can ascertain that its a high speed head-on accident….surely how many lives is going take for this incompetent PF govt and RSTA to wake up … PSV should not be doing more than 100km/hr on a road and should not be on the road between 22:00 and 05:00 hrs.
All buses need to fitted with speed limiters like in Kenya and in Europe
Is night driving allowed again??
Correction: not head-on collision but similar in that bus driver collided with stationary vehicle.
These bus drivers are so reckless everywhere in the country. Passengers just travel by Gods grace.
Last time I asked fellow passengers to disembark from a mini bus that had no road fitness certificate, I was called all sorts of names by these passengers.
@2.1 Ndanje Khakis Zambians at times can amaze you, I do not know how we are going to reeducate the general populace. At times I see why president Lungu cannot develop the nation as needed. Where is he going to get the normal people, when the citizens support mediocrity? Your story is sad.
When will these drivers learn? Last Friday as I was to turn into a road a car Toyota Allion not yet registered overtook me on the side I was turning. Luckily I am a slow driver so that vehicle passed without hitting into my vehicle.
@Ndanje Khakis
That happens to me several times every week, at one point I thought someone was bewitching me to die in a road accident. The driving standards on our roads are appalling. That is what RATSA and Traffic Police is supposed to focus on, not mounting tuma roadblocks at 07:00 hours on a Monday to catch hard-working citizens trying to get to the office to make money to re-new their road-tax.
for sure even us passengers are to blame most times because if the driver is driving careless we need to advise him strongly and life lost can never be replaced. sad indeed. Customers have to learn to do the right thing and police should support such cases once reported.
Unfortunately in Zambia all, without exception, PSV drivers are bad drivers. These guys stop anywhere at any time and never say sorry. Why should they be like this ..their employers give them abnormal targets to meet.
Those that drive trucks or lorries have no regard for cars or pedestrians, they will simply turn or stop any where and any time. During the UNIP time these were looked at as the best drivers in the country and were proud to have the PSV licence. These days a red number plate is a warning to everyone that they can flout traffic rules at will and every one near them is at their own risk. We have lost that many lives and this will just end by charging the driver. RTSA should look at ways to avoid a repeat. MTSRIEP
I agree with Nostradamus and khakis, bus passengers when they are on a bus they think are invincible, they cheer on a driver who’s driving recklessly. instead of yelling at a driver is overtaking unnecessarily and speeding excessively. when one or two passengers voice their concern regarding the speeding, other passengers on the bus get on his case.
the roads ain’t that good, please drive according to road conditions. a vehicle can turn into a deadly weapon real quick.
passengers please speak out, reckless driving won’t help you get to your destination any faster. don’t behave like little school kids cheering on a driver who’s overly over speeding to pass
I’m also disappointed with RATSA. When they mount a road block, they only fine drivers for unroadworthy vehicles and let them drive off with these same vehicles. If a vehicle is not roadworth, then it’s a danger to other road users and as such it must not be allowed on the road until the defects are repaired.
I agree with everyone here, but RATSA are the most corrupt and useless than the police. Thanks.
The solution to these accidents is simple, government should cancel all those licences obtained before 1999 and the the affected drivers retrained. Most of these licences from the period mentioned were just bought. I have met people who have driving licences, before having been on the wheel. Take some interest and check for yourself most dangerous drivers are the ones who got their licences after the year 2000. Majority of them have never read the highway code, let alone seeing it. They have no Idea what road signs mean to the driver. Until drivers are retrained these accidents will continue.
After 1999 meant to say sorry for the typo.
I have driven on highways before. Accident do happen.Here are the tips. Pray before your start your journey.Overtake when it is safe to do so, watch the stopping distance,exercise patience, be alert,overtake one vehicle at time unless there are no oncoming car on the opposite side.Maintain the speed limit.Avoid complacence when you are about to reach your final destination. MTSRIP
Whilst you are fooolishly praying you think the third party vehicle driver is also prayed with bottles of mosi.
Rats are the best corrupt *****s people everything is corruption.nothing the best they do apart from training people how to rob them.to renew drivers license after you pay what is supposed to be they tell you we don’t have papers to make cards until you give them kangachepe .I renewed on 3 Dec update they don’t process cards very moronic organization.
1. Government should withdraw licinces from this drivers and burn them from driving, the way they do to doctors, teachers and lawyers.
2. Also passengers are to blame be they scared to report the driver. We must safe guard our lives from this untrained Dravers
Its time rtsa took charge and used their tow trucks to remove broken down vehicles off the roads and roadsides so that traffic will flow smoothly. The government has spent a lot of money on buying heavy duty tow trucks that are not put to proper use to make our highways safe.
Sell these trucks to individuals and contract them to remove wrecks from the roads and roadsides for a fee payable by the owner of the truck…. Many times trucks break down on the highways for days, and even weeks and it turns out that same point of break down becomes a workshop.
Along chingola/chililabombwe road, at solwezi turn off there is a truck that is parked in the cruising lane for months and it seems neither the traffic officers nor rtsa have paid attention to the hazard that it presents to the public and other motorists. We seriously need trained safety officers to take charge on our highways and byways.
The driver of the broken down truck was equally reckless not to have warned other road users by ensuring that the reflective triangles are appropriately placed in front and behind the broken down truck! Zambians generally have a very poor safety culture in general! Having travelled regularly on these buses, Zambians don’t fasten seat belts on these buses! That is the primary reason why we have high fatality rate on these bus accidents! You can’t control the driver much but you have control when it comes to fastening of seat belts! Sad to lose lives like this!
It’s the police who are reckless by failing to enforce speed limits. Drivers, particularly young ones, are likely to drive at killing speed. It’s bad enough when a single person gets involved in an accident; much worse when it is a commercial driver. The risk is higher, much higher. The logical corollary is that, there should be a law and its enforcer, limiting speedy driving on the roads.
Comment:I think the law should be revisited again for all motorists who are moving at night to immediately park their vehicles at 17:30 hrs, maybe something can happen for the better change. balatupwisha mwebantu.
Wrong! The wheels of Commerce must be in motion day and night! This is the standard world over! You don’t stop buses or trucks from moving at night! What is killing people is Lawlessness – Failure by young drivers to adhere to the rules of driving and a weak Traffic division which only does its job during the day and goes to sleep at night! Above all, poorly done roads without night driving road delineators coupled with poor illumination! We can’t blame the buses! It’s Africans failing to live the high lifestyle of their colonizers!
This is sadder than plane crashes!
I mean cumulative vehicle casualties in any sizable country far outstrips cumulative plane casualties worldwide.
Now compare that with worldwide cumulative vehicle casualties compounded by train, motor cycle, bicycle, ox-cart etc casualties! Planes ironically are safest mode of transport!
Yet a mere plane crash attracts unnecessarily disproportionate public consternation.
Does it mean vehicle, train, motorcycle, bicycle or ox-cart casualties are of lesser importance?
It’s high time vehicle accident attention was raised proportionately!
Please Drivers mind your life and other people’s lives. Life is once. A real driver cannot compete by means of over speeding. Whether you are walking you can reach the destination without fail. God will punish you, because the blood of all those souls will be on your heard. please, if you can’t manage just go back to the land and become a farmer or charcoal burner. God please forgive every soul and keep them in your remembrance.
Ratsa is corrupt, it’s there duty to re-test psv drivers especially who drives buses, the issue of night ban is the culprit.. Drivers are in punch mode. Atleast they would have ban trucks not buses,this would have released pressure from bus drivers, copperbelt to Lusaka another time bomb ticking,bus drivers are flying towards evening to beat time.ratsa lift ban for buses please.muleumfwa… Very very sad…and touching.
I have travelled on this bus before and the first time I used it was my last! Most Scorpion bus drivers are very unprofessional and they cruise like they are high on weed!
The trouble is us passengers! We don’t talk when we see drivers are overspending! We can’t even call the toll-free number for RTSA to report such drivers. When you do that on the bus, almost everyone will condemn you left-right-center! Unless we change our attitude towards Safety, we’ll continue perishing at the hands of Lunatics! Let’s be more proactive than always being reactive!
oUR HIGH COMMISSIONER BRENDA MUTEMBA DIED IN A SIMILAR WAY IN KENYA, DONT CHEAT PIPO KENYA HAS NO SPEED LIMITERS FITTED ONTO PUBLIC TRANSPORT MHSRIP, HOWEVER THIS IS A GREAT LOSS TO THE NATIONWISH THOSE IN HOSPITALS RECOVER AND DRIVER DATA IS NOT CLEAR , HOW OLD, WHERE IS HE , WHAT TRIBE WAS HE, ETC
What has tribe of the driver got to do with road safety? Please elaborate before we conclude you are a tribalist!
A lot. Has been articulated to sum up, we have so many incompetence drivers, how they obtain licences RTSA knows. I have too reported someone who held a drivers licence PSV when he had just started a driving course for small cars….amazing they confirmed but licence was not revoked.
Government should work on this issue it’s almost taking the life of our brothers and sisters
Rest In Peace! I have lost one of my family members in same accident.The pic was taken at shifted vicinity,the actual is terrible.
The solution to speeding should be to lock all buses with speed limiters so they don’t go beyond 60 kmph, this will safe guard the lives of the traveling public however the the corrupt law inforcers will not help out.
These drivers who cause such accidents must be punished by imprisonment, this will help other drivers to know the consequences of careless driving.
Really heart breaking to learn how people can just loose their lives in such a way.
Every one is going to blame the driver.The driver stands condemned.But the real blame must go to the manufacturers.I could imagine those white factory workers putting on slack screws.To cause a crash.Speed limiters would definitely help.Peter Carlos Hinds.
Invest in your people.Blacks can assemble vehicles and make cars too.Peter carlos Hinds.
How do you blame government and RATSA for over speeding and causing an accident. It is like blaming GRZ for early pregnancies. I think putting speed limiters may help here. Truth is that if driver did not over speed the accident could have been avoided. We all travel daily and that it is mere careless driving that is a contributor to 90% of currently occuring accidents. If we are not careful we will begin blaming government for over eating and suffering stomach upsets!
Stupid driver, he has no respect for life!!!