NZHELELE – Although there was a heavy shower, community members and the MEC for Transport, Dr Tshenuwani Farisani led a march against the escalation of road accidents in the Nzhelele area last Friday.

MEC Farisani appreciated the presence of parents whose children died when a car smashed into them at Tshirenzeni on June 15, 2002. Farisani said his department was there to place flowers of remembrance for the five victims crashed by the car. He also said that this flower placing is meant to educate communities, students and pupils on safety measures to be taken on the road, either as pedestrians or motorists.

The MEC said it is the intention of his department to intensify road safety communication campaigns. He said the recent accident on the Mphephu road worries the transport department.

The road accident statistics revealed that thirty accidents were recorded in the Nzhelele Area from the beginning of the year. Pedestrians are the most affected group of road users. An elderly woman was killed along the Mphephu Drive in April 2002, and many more people sustained injuries in different incidences around Sendedza.

About 13 deaths were recorded in a weekend from 20 to 23 September and this reflects negatively on our strategies, he said. During the same period, the Capricorn district topped all the other districts with 42 casualties, followed by Mopani with 15, Vhembe with 6 and both Sekhukhune and Waterberg with five each.