At least 13 schoolchildren were killed after a minibus transporting pupils to school collided with a truck near Vanderbijlpark, south of Johannesburg, South African police have confirmed.
The crash occurred about 60 kilometres south of the country’s economic hub, in an area known for heavy industrial traffic. According to police, the driver of the minibus lost control while attempting to overtake other vehicles on the road.
“The minibus appeared to have veered off course during an overtaking manoeuvre before colliding with the truck,” a police spokesperson said.
The death toll initially stood at 12 but later rose to 13 after one of the injured pupils died from their injuries, the Gauteng Provincial Department of Education confirmed in a statement. Several other children remain in critical condition at nearby hospital.
Provincial Education Minister Matome Chiloane said the victims included both primary and high school learners.
“These were young pupils, some from primary schools and others from secondary schools. This is a devastating loss for their families and our education community,” Chiloane said.
Heartbreaking scenes unfolded at the crash site, with images on social media showing the crushed minibus on the roadside as distraught parents gathered behind police tape. Some parents reportedly collapsed in grief when they were allowed to identify the bodies.
Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi described the scene as “terrible” and extended condolences to the affected families.
“This is a tragic day for our province. We share in the pain of the families who have lost their children under such painful circumstances,” Lesufi said.
President Cyril Ramaphosa also expressed his condolences and called for stricter enforcement of road safety laws, particularly for school transport vehicles.
“Everything must be done to enforce the rules of the road and ensure the quality of school transport services in order to protect learners, the nation’s most precious assets,” the president said in a statement.
Many South African families rely on privately operated minibuses to transport children to school due to limited public transport options. However, road accidents involving school vehicles remain a major concern.
In a similar tragedy last year, at least five pupils were killed and eight others injured when a school minibus crashed into a crèche in a KwaZulu-Natal township. In another incident, 11 children—some as young as seven and eight—died when their school minibus overturned and caught fire near Johannesburg.
According to the Transport Ministry, more than 11,400 people lost their lives on South African roads last year, highlighting the country’s ongoing road safety crisis driven by speeding, reckless driving, and poorly maintained vehicles.
Authorities have launched a full investigation into the crash.
