Truck company donates to Mpuma crash families

Johannesburg - A truck company has donated R120 000 to the families of 12 people who died in an accident earlier this month, the Mpumalanga community Safety department said on Friday.

"Spiros, the owners of the truck that was involved in an accident with a minibus taxi on 3 October 2014 between Volksrust and Standerton... yesterday donated R120 000 to the 12 families of the people who died in that crash," it said in a statement.

"[Department] representatives were part of the entourage that met with the representatives of the 12 bereaved families during the presentation of R10 000 to each of the 12 families."

It said all the families, most residing in KwaZulu-Natal, were transported to the scene of the accident for a short prayer before meeting Spiros representatives in Standerton.

Speaking on behalf of the families, Thami Khumalo thanked government for its support since the accident.

"He also appreciated the goodwill shown by Spiros for the donations to the families saying they did not expect anything from the truck company considering the circumstances surrounding the crash," the department said.

Spiros’ advocate Hennie Keyter said the company donated to the families because it was grieving with them.

"We want to assure everyone that it is our responsibility as truck owners to ensure that our drivers are fit and have the right attitude to be on the road," Keyter said in the statement.

"This is the beginning. We are joining hands with government to deal with bad driver behaviour on our roads. We will support all initiatives aimed at promoting road safety."

Six others were injured when the taxi and a truck collided head-on on the R23 between Perdekop and Standerton.

According to the department, the minibus failed to stop at a "stop and go" construction site. The driver did not have the right of way and was driving along a single lane road, when the two vehicles collided.

The department later said the driver was arrested for having an allegedly fake licence. His bail was denied on 6 October.

Councillor Busisiwe Sikhonde of Lekwa Municipality, speaking on behalf of MEC Vusi Shongwe, said in the statement on Friday that traffic officers must not turn a blind eye to reckless and negligent driving.

"It is the responsibility of each and every taxi or truck owner to teach their drivers road safety and the dangers of disobeying traffic rules."