WATCH | Distraught parents force way onto Vanderbijlpark school transport crash site

Parents of the 13 pupils who died in a collision between a scholar transport vehicle and a truck in Vanderbijlpark on Monday morning forcefully entered the crash site where their dead children lay in the wreckage after police repeatedly tried to stop them from gaining access.

The parents said they had been at the scene since 7am after seeing multiple videos circulating on social media, which they believed showed their children among the victims.

Desperate to identify their loved ones, parents pushed past police lines to view the bodies of the children. The emotional scenes were marked by sobbing as families came face to face with the devastating reality of their loss.

The minibus taxi in which the pupils were travelling was destroyed. Its interior was mangled beyond recognition, the front windscreen was shattered, and only parts of the front of the vehicle were still identifiable.

Some parents said they had already seen images of their children on social media and could no longer wait for official confirmation.

“I just want to see my child’s body, and they keep telling us we cannot access the scene because they are still processing it, as if that will bring my child back,” said one distraught parent. “They keep telling us about politicians who will come, but now all we want is our children.”

The provincial government needs to establish whether the vehicle was roadworthy and legal, whether the driver was properly licensed and whether all scholar transport safety regulations were adhered to

—  Ayanda Allie, Build One SA MPL

Another parent said they had been there early in the morning, yet no one told them anything. “The next minute they will tell us to go identify [our children] at the mortuary,” the parent said.

The police have urged families to remain calm, saying the scene must be processed properly to allow for investigations and the dignified removal of the victims.

President Cyril Ramaphosa said in a statement this is a stressful day, with a deadly crash happening on the same day the SA Human Rights Commission published a report on scholar transport challenges in the North West.

“Our children are the nation’s most precious assets and we must do all we can — from observing the rules of the road to the quality of service providers appointed to transport scholars — to protect learners,” he said.

The national and provincial authorities will provide families and schools with psychosocial support, Ramaphosa added.

Build One SA MPL Ayanda Allie has called on the Gauteng education MEC Matome Chiloane to investigate the circumstances surrounding the accident.

“The provincial government needs to establish whether the vehicle was roadworthy and legal, whether the driver was properly licensed and whether all scholar transport safety regulations were adhered to,” she said.

“Parents entrust the state and service providers with the safety of their children every single day and deserve that at the very least. This loss demands urgent intervention to strengthen oversight, enforcement and standards across the scholar transport system.”

Sowetan