Two pupils of Jonathan Mushaathama Secondary School died when their bakkie overturned on Saturday morning. Twenty-six others were seriously injured in the accident on the N1 near Maromboda.

The pupils were coming back from another pupil´s funeral. Ironically, the other pupil had also died in an accident.

One of the survivors said the overloaded bakkie was swerving from one side of the road to the other and was moving at a very high speed when the driver lost control and the bakkie started ro roll. "I cannot even explain what is happening to our school. This is a great and sad loss to our entire school," said the grieving pupil.

The Makhado SAPS spokesperson, Capt Maano Sadike, said the cause of the accident was still unknown. According to him, the vehicle was overloaded as it is abnormal for a bakkie to transport 28 passengers. He said the driver was still in a critical condition in hospital, but had been charged with culpable homicide. Some of the injured pupils were admitted for treatment but later discharged from the Louis Trichardt Memorial and Siloam Hospital.

The mayor of Makhado Municipality, Cllr Mavhungu Luruli, and her entourage of high-ranking officials paid a visit to the school and the families of the deceased, offering their condolences. Luruli said the family should know that the municipality shared their grief. “We know it is painful to lose loved ones, but we would like the families to accept it as it is."

The school´s principal, Mr Tsanwani Mashudu, said the incident had left many learners traumatized and it would take some time and specialized counseling for them to recover fully. On Monday, classes didn´t go on as usual, since learners were too tramatised to attend school. Counsellors were assigned to address them.

Mr Wilson Tshikosi, a family representative of both families, said that the families were still in shock after the untimely deaths. The two families agreed that the death of their children was a great loss to them, the school and the community. Tshikosi said that the families had accepted the loss, although it was difficult to swallow. "We understand and accept that our children are no longer alive, but it will be very difficult for us to live without them. God has done His will and there is nothing we can do, because the situation is irreversible," he added.

The deceased will be laid to rest tomorrow at Tshikuwi and Tshituni .The service will start at 06:00 at the Makhado Multipurpose Centre.