Ministry of Foreign Affairs says South African authorities are conducting forensic analysis to identify and determine the number of Malawian nationals who died in a tragic bus accident in South Africa on Sunday.
Spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Charles Nkhalamba, said due to the extent of the damage, it is currently difficult to identify those who died in the accident.
Nkhalamba said officers from the Malawi High Commission in Pretoria and the Consulate in Johannesburg are working in close coordination with South African authorities to assist Malawians who were injured in the accident in Limpopo Province.
He stated that the officers visited the accident site and verified that 42 individuals had died on the spot, while 41 others were transported to various hospitals within the province for medical treatment.
Further, the officers visited one of the three hospitals where the injured were admitted and identified at least four Malawian nationals. Of these, three were treated as outpatients and discharged on Monday.
They will also be visiting the remaining two hospitals to continue verifying the status of Malawian nationals.
“Once we have confirmed the number of Malawians who have died and those who are injured, there will be engagement between the Ministry and the Department of Disaster Management Affairs (DoDMA) on how best we can support those who may need assistance to repatriate their loved ones, as well as those who are injured so they can return to Malawi,” Nkhalamba said.
