HARARE – A ZUPCO bus overturned near Beatrice, Mashonaland East, on Tuesday, injuring 27 people.
Police blamed driver error for the accident, the second involving a ZUPCO bus in two days, and the fourth since December 28 involving the state-owned bus company’s new buses acquired from Belarus.
Pictures from the accident scene in Beatrice showed dazed passengers walking away from the bus, their clothes muddied after the bus landed in a puddle.
Inspector Tendai Mwanza of Mashonaland East police said the driver appeared to have been speeding under wet conditions before losing control.
The ZUPCO bus was coming from Zvishavane and heading to Harare with 67 passengers onboard.
“On approaching the 57km peg, the driver lost control of the bus and it veered off the road, overturned and landed on its right side. Twenty-seven people were injured and were rushed to Beatrice Hospital for treatment. We are still investigating the cause of the accident,” Mwanza said.
“Roads are usually very slippery when it is raining, we urge drivers to exercise extreme caution in this rainy weather to avoid accidents.”
On Monday, a ZUPCO bus side-swiped with a Honda Fit near Kwekwe before ploughing into two parked commuter omnibuses. Seven people were killed and dozens injured in the crash.
A ZUPCO bus overturned near Gweru on December 28, injuring several people.
On January 7, three people were killed and dozens injured after another of the new buses skidded off the road following a light drizzle near Chipangali Wildlife Sanctuary in Bulawayo.
