Chibego/Reuters
A view of the charred remains of a bus carrying Easter pilgrims from Botswana to Moria following the crash near Mamtlakala in the northern province of Limpopo, South Africa.
CNN
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Dozens of worshipers died when a bus traveling to an Easter conference crashed in South Africa's Limpopo province on Thursday, the latest tragedy in a country where recent road accidents have claimed many lives.
The crash killed 45 people and the only survivor, an eight-year-old girl, was airlifted to hospital with serious injuries, the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) reported.
According to the SABC, the passengers were pilgrims traveling from Gaborone, the capital of neighboring Botswana, to Zion Christian Church in Moria town for an Easter conference.
The accident occurred on the Mamtlakala pass between Mokopane and Marken. The bus is said to have burst into flames after falling off the bridge over the barricades. The cause of the accident is under investigation.
In a statement, the provincial transport department said, “According to reports, the bus lost control of the driver and crashed onto a rocky surface about 50 meters under the bridge and caught fire.”
Efforts to recover the bodies of the deceased passengers are ongoing, the statement said.
Chibego/Reuters
A man walks across the damaged part of the bridge where the bus crashed through the barriers.
“Some bodies were burnt beyond recognition,” the local department said. Others were “trapped in the rubble [are] Scattered across the scene,” it added.
Authorities have so far recovered only 12 bodies from the crash site, said Florence Ratzilani, a member of the province's executive committee for transport and social security.
Radjilani said When local news channel Newsroom Africa rushed to the scene on Thursday, “the situation was dire.”
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Ratzilani said authorities had arranged for a minibus to take some relatives to the crash site on Friday and then take the lone survivor to a hospital to be examined, as officials worked early in the morning to recover the bodies. Friday's show.
South African Transport Minister Chindisiwe Chikunga told the state broadcaster that the government would return the bodies to Botswana.
“My deepest condolences to the families affected by the bus accident near Mamatlakala. Our thoughts and prayers are with you at this difficult time. With more people on our roads this Easter weekend, we continue to urge people to drive responsibly at all times,” Chikunga said in a statement.
And South African President Cyril Ramaphosa Expressed his condolences To the Government of Botswana and the families and friends of the victims of the bus accident.
This story has been updated with further developments.
