Last week, a bus loaded with passengers heading to an Easter worship festival crashed, falling nearly 200 feet off of a bridge in South Africa.  The death toll currently sits at 45. Officials from the Limpopo provincial government stated the bus was traveling from the neighboring country of Botswana to the town of Moria, taking its passengers to a popular Easter celebration.

However, when driving on the Mmamatlakala bridge, the bus ran off the side of the road before plunging roughly 164 feet into a nearby ravine and erupting into flames.  The single survivor of the catastrophic wreck was an 8-year-old girl who sustained severe injuries and was transported from the scene to receive medical treatment.

fatal crash that claimed the lives of nearly all its passengers.

“It is alleged that the driver lost control, colliding with barriers on the bridge causing the bus to go over the bridge and hitting the ground, where it caught fire,” the department stated. South Africa Minister of Transport, Sindisiwe Chikunga, also gave her “heartfelt condolences to the families affected by the tragic bus crash,” adding, “Our thoughts and prayers are with you during this difficult time.”

The statement from the Limpopo Provincial Government noted that officials have been assigned to the crash to conduct a thorough investigation of what went wrong.  Furthermore, the young survivor of the crash will be provided with the necessary support to overcome the trauma from the incident.

“The Premier had dispatched the MEC for Transport and Community Safety, Ms Florence Radzilani, to the scene of the accident to conduct a thorough investigation and determine the circumstances that led to this tragic incident. The MEC for Health, Dr Phophi Ramathuba, has also been dispatched to assist the only surviving passenger whilst the Department of Social Development will provide necessary psycho-social support.”  See news coverage of the incident below:

Note:  The featured image is a screenshot from the embedded video.