Eleven people were injured in seven separate crashes across northern KwaZulu-Natal on Monday as rain, snow and treacherous road conditions swept through the Vryheid and Newcastle areas.
KwaZulu Private Ambulance Service medical teams from Vryheid and Newcastle responded to the collisions over five hours, between 3pm and 8pm.
The crashes were concentrated along the R34 between Bloedriver and the N11, in Vryheid and on the N11 at Ingogo.
KZPA spokesperson, Craig Botha said the most dramatic incident happened on the R34 at Bloedriver Poort, where a family’s vehicle lost control, left the road and landed in a nearby dam.
Advanced paramedics used water rescue techniques in near-freezing conditions to bring all four occupants to safety.
The occupants were also treated for hypothermia after being exposed to the cold water.
He explained that the mother sustained serious injuries, including suspected fractures, while the father and two children, an estimated 10-year-old girl and 14-year-old boy, suffered minor injuries.
Image: KZPA
In another crash on the same stretch of the R34, a vehicle lost control and overturned, leaving three occupants with minor injuries.
In Vryheid, a bakkie lost control on Kerk Street and collided with a tree. Two people sustained serious injuries, including suspected chest injuries and fractures.
Meanwhile, three people sustained minor injuries in a two-vehicle collision on the N11 at Ingogo.
KZPA’s medical teams stabilised all the patients at the scenes before transporting them to local hospitals for further treatment.
KZPA has urged motorists to exercise extreme caution while the cold front persists, warning that rain, snow, and icy conditions continue to affect road surfaces across the region.
