Johannesburg – Another schoolchild has died in hospital, raising the death toll to 14 from the horrific Vanderbijlpark minibus taxi collision with a tipper truck.
Initially, reports stated that the tipper truck rammed into the minibus taxi; however, preliminary investigations indicate that the minibus taxi made an illegal overtaking manoeuvre and crashed head-on into the tipper truck.
The deadly collision occurred during the morning school run on Monday, 19 January 2026.
Soon after the collision, 11 schoolchildren were declared dead on the scene.
Another deceased child was found entrapped under the minibus taxi, and two others succumbed to their injuries in the hospital.
Commenting on the possible cause of the crash, Gauteng Education MEC Matome Chiloane said: “The private scholar transport driver was trying to overtake multiple vehicles at a time.
“And if you look at the time, he was most probably late to drop off learners because they were going to five different schools, so I’m sure he was trying to catch up [on] time.
“And then as he was trying to overtake a number of vehicles, the truck came on the opposite side.”
The driver of the minibus taxi remains in hospital, but police are probing possible charges related to dangerous driving that resulted in multiple fatalities.
The scholar transport minibus was reportedly overloaded – carrying 18 schoolchildren, instead of the certified 14 passengers.
A distraught mother, who lost two children in the horror collision, said between sobs that no arrests or court action will bring her “family any peace”.
President Cyril Ramaphosa, Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi, and Education MEC Chiloane expressed condolences and called for stricter regulations on private school transport.
Investigations continue, including a review of the truck’s dashcam footage.
