Two people died when five vehicles were involved in a horror accident at the Tusk Venda traffic lights in Thohoyandou, on Friday last week.

Shocked people looked on in disbelief as emergency workers used the "Jaws of Life" to retrieve those who were critically injured, although they could not save the lives of the two. The unfortunate incident happened after a tipper, which was travelling from Sibasa towards the Thohoyandou area, burst a tyre and failed to brake at the traffic lights. The tipper was carrying a load of sand which was then dumped all over the road. It then hit four other vehicles, resulting in the death of the two people.

The two people who died were the tipper driver and a passenger of a Toyota Corolla.

An eye witness, Jack Raulivha, said he heard a loud banging sound before the accident happened. "I was standing at the bus stop, waiting for the bus to take me home, when I suddenly heard that sound. I realized that the tipper could not stop at the red light and it was travelling at high speed. It then hit the other vehicles before it rolled several times. That was the most horrible accident I have ever seen in my life."

Regional police spokesperson Adv Ailwei Mushavhanamadi said there was a Zimbabwean man who was sitting on the sand in the tipper when the accident happened. "He immediately jumped off when he realized that there was danger coming. He was also injured but and he was taken to hospital for treatment. The other vehicles that were involved in the accident include two Toyota Corollas, a Mazda 3 and another truck. Two cases of culpable homicide and negligent driving are being investigated by the police."