S Africa crash kills eight UK tourists

Eight British tourists have been killed in South Africa when the minibus they were travelling in overturned.

South Africa has some of the world's most dangerous roads

Captain Joshua Gwala said on Thursday the accident occurred near Bergville on Wednesday in northern KwaZulu-Natal province when the driver of the bus suddenly swerved in an attempt to avoid a pedestrian. 

“It is believed that during the process the driver lost control and the minibus overturned,” Gwala said in a statement, adding that the pedestrian was also killed in the accident. 

Six tourists died on the scene and another two died shortly after as a result of their injuries, police said. 

A spokeswoman for the Ladysmith Provincial Hospital said four other members of the group, including the South African driver and a tour guide, were treated for injuries and released. 

Survivors

A total of five tour group members, including one Canadian,
survived the accident, officials said. Britain’s Foreign Office said British consular officers were at the scene of the crash, which occurred near the Royal Natal national park in KwaZulu-Natal’s Drakensberg mountains. Families of the victims were being informed, police said. 

British High Commission spokesman Nick Sheppard said the
group had been on a camping trip and that survivors would be
assisted in returning to Britain. 

South Africa has some of the world’s most dangerous roads,
logging about 500,000 crashes each year in which an estimated 10,000 people are killed. 

Source: Reuters