Windhoek — Ten people were killed and 28 injured early on Saturday morning when a truck encroached onto the other lane and collided head-on with an oncoming bus, about 30 kilometres from Tsumeb on the way to Oshivelo.

The bus carrying 64 passengers was on its way to Oshakati from Windhoek when it crashed into a truck that strayed onto its lane at around 01h00. Nine people died on the spot while the tenth injuries sustained while in hospital.

The names of the deceased have not yet been released.

Added to the nine corpses that the police officials had to collect from the scene of the accident, were three more corpses that were loaded in the bus in the cargo compartment.

Some of the deceased are believed to be relatives accompanying the three bodies that were en route to Oshakati for burial.

The Swapo-owned Namib Contract Haulage buses are commonly used by travellers heading to the north because of their affordable prices and safety standards.

Police told New Era that nine lives were claimed on the spot, while the injured passengers were transported to the Tsumeb and Oshakati state hospitals.

Road crash statistics released by the Motor Vehicle Accident Fund yesterday indicate that the Tsumeb-Oshivelo road has so far claimed 15 lives this week after five people died on that road on Tuesday, after the driver lost control of the vehicle causing it to overturn.

According to the statistics released by the Motor Vehicle Accident (MVA) Fund yesterday, two of the severely injured patients, one of which is the truck driver, were airlifted from Tsumeb to Windhoek and are both currently in ICU. The third patient was transported to Ongwediva for further injury management.

The MVA Fund also indicated that 26 crashes were reported to its call centre over the weekend, while 66 people sustained injuries and 10 died.

"Road crash data indicate that most of the crashes occur as a result of human error, therefore the needless loss of lives on our roads is preventable. It is tragic that many of our road users have not yet grasped the very real dangers that exist on our roads - and until that happens, we will remain a nation in mourning," says the MVA Fund.