Keetmanshoop
Four people died on the spot in a car accident 25 kilometres from Aus in the //Karas Region on Sunday.
The four people, all believed to be members of one family, died instantly after the Toyota Fortuner they were travelling in overturned.
It is reported that the car overturned after a BMW travelling in the same direction tried to overtake, but the driver lost control and plunged into the Toyota, causing the driver to lose control and both cars left the road and overturned.
All occupants of the Toyota were allegedly thrown out of the car, resulting in the instant death of the driver, a pregnant woman, a young woman and a child, while the driver and two passengers in the BMW sustained serious injuries and were taken to the nearest hospital.
A source who was one of the first people at the accident scene narrated to New Era that when he got to the scene three of the passengers had already died, while the driver and his two-year-old son were still alive but unfortunately the father also passed away, while an ambulance was on its way to render help. The ambulance arrived more than three hours later.
In a separate incident two people died at Aussenkehr on Sunday morning at about 06h00, after the car they were travelling in overturned.
The driver of the vehicle apparently lost control and the car overturned and rolled several times.
The driver died on his way to hospital while a passenger died on the spot. The other six passengers who were injured were admitted to the same hospital.
Nampol commander of //Karas Region, Commissioner Johannes Tsuseb, confirmed the lethal accidents and called on drivers to be considerate when on the road.
He said drivers should refrain from driving under the influence and also know when to overtake safely.
Tsuseb said road users should know that roads have hills, which make it difficult to see in front when overtaking and thus extra caution should be taken.
“You can’t come from nowhere and immediately want to overtake – people should know when to overtake safely,” he said.
He warned that the police will be on road patrols to make sure drunk drivers are brought to book, in an effort to avoid accidents in future.
He could not give more details on the two accidents saying the next of kin were yet to be informed
Police investigations into both accidents continue.