Although local roads were relatively quiet this past festive season in terms of accidents and fatalities, this is no longer the case.
Shortly after Transport Minister Joe Maswanganyi's announcement of the decline in road fatalities over the festive season, Louis Trichardt experienced a sudden increase in accidents over the past two weeks.
With the holidays fast becoming a faint memory, local motorists are seemingly always in a hurry, causing them to miss a stop sign or two. One of these recent so-called "fender benders" was reported on the corner of Kruger and Rissik Street on Monday afternoon. A sedan coming along Kruger Street and a bakkie coming along Rissik Street collided in the crossing. The whole incident was captured on a nearby security camera. Nobody was injured in this incident.
Sadly, some other accidents were more serious.
On Friday, 19 January, Mr Dirk du Preez (79) was seriously injured when he was involved in a partial head-on collision with a bus along Industria Road.
Another accident on Saturday claimed the life of well-known businessman Mr Tshamano "Mackenzie" Mulaudzi (54). He passed away when he lost control of his car and it hit a tree. The accident occurred on the Fort Edward road leading to Vleifontein. He was alone in the vehicle and, from what could be established, died on the spot.
On Wednesday, the sudden spate of accidents continued when the Soutpansberg mountain pass claimed another life.
One person died instantly while two others sustained serious injuries in a horror crash along the N1 North on Wednesday morning. The accident, involving a truck, occurred around 11:00 just as rain began to pour down in the mountain pass. The accident occurred near the Witvlag road turn-off. According to rescue workers on the scene, the truck was travelling in a southerly direction when tragedy struck.
The truck apparently struck the safety barrier on the opposite side of the road, causing its trailer to flip over the cab. The two injured people, which included the driver of the truck, were transported to the Louis Trichardt Memorial Hospital for medical treatment.