Residents of Mutoti outside Thohoyandou and the surrounding villages believe that only the government has the capacity to stop the spate of fatal accidents happening in their vicinity.

This follows a gruesome accident that happened along a stretch of road next to the village on the Thohoyandou-Malamulele road on Saturday, 12 March. The driver of a taxi and one of the passengers were killed in the accident. Many passenger were seriously injured.

The accident that happened around 16:30 when a truck and a fully loaded taxi collided head-on. Firefighters from Ramushwana Fire Station had to use the jaws of life to cut the vehicles open in order to free the injured and the dead from the mangled wrecks of the vehicles.

The injured were smeared with paint belonging to one of the passengers. Some were crying hysterically because of their injuries and of shock. Mr Lufuno Khangale, community leader and former local civic chairperson at Mutoti, said they were concerned by the number of accidents happening in their area, saying these had become a major concern in the area. “We are appealing to the government to step in and change this road that has become a death trap before many more lives are lost," he said.

Thohoyandou police spokesperson Constable Avhafarei Tshiovhe urged motorists to be cautious when driving, saying many of the accidents on the roads could be averted if people followed the rules of the road.