Four people died on Eastern Cape roads on New Year's Day following two separate vehicle crashes.
The Eastern Cape Transport Department said that the first accident occurred on the R726 in Sterkspruit, near Thabalithsuba Location towards Zastron, when two vehicles collided head-on late Monday night.
"The vehicles, a Nissan bakkie with one occupant and a Corsa bakkie with two occupants were traveling from opposite directions when they collided," said Department spokesperson, Khuselwa Rantjie.
"All occupants from both vehicles were declared dead at the scene. The jaws of life had to be used to extricate the bodies from the wreckage due to the nature of the crash," she said.
Rantjie said that the cause of the accident is still being investigated, but preliminary reports indicate that drinking and driving might have been a contributing factor.
She said a case of culpable homicide was opened and will be investigated by local police.
Meanwhile, she said Jeffreys Bay police are investigating a case of culpable homicide after a man was killed when he lost control of his vehicle on the R102 late on Monday night.
She said the two male passengers in the car were seriously injured and admitted to a hospital.
Rantjie said that it's alleged that drinking and driving may have contributed to the cause of the crash.
In another accident, 33 people, including 7 children were treated for injuries when a 22 seater minibus taxi collided with a bakkie in Port Elizabeth.
The two vehicles were traveling towards the same direction when the incident occurred.
Rantjie said there were no fatalities in this incident but she said emergency services personnel (medical staff, traffic, and police) reportedly had a tough time when working on the scene as passengers exhibited an unruly behaviour making it difficult for medical staff to attend to them.
"The majority of crashes that occur on our roads are a result of human behaviour and we are pleading with all road users to be responsible on the roads," said Transport, Safety, and Liaison MEC Weziwe Tikana.
"We would like to appeal to all road users to remain calm when officers are attending a scene as road rage and unruly behaviour may aggravate their injuries including causing another crash," added Tikana.
The Eastern Cape Department of Transport said that since December 01, 2017 to date 97,076 vehicles were stopped and searched, while 10616 fines were issued for various offences. "A total of 449 vehicles had their licenses removed and 83 motorists were arrested for driving while under the influence of alcohol. Stray animals remained a constant threat on the roads increasing the risk of accidents especially on the R61 between Queenstown and Mthatha," Rantjie said.
The Department said that Traffic Law Enforcement Officers will continue to be visible on the roads and road safety operations will be implemented until the end of the festive season.
