The death toll in the sideswipe accident involving a bus and truck on the R34 near Vryheid in KwaZulu-Natal on Monday night has been revised to 10.

The KwaZulu-Natal transport and human settlements department initially said there were 12 fatalities but MEC Siboniso Duma confirmed 10 people had died after visiting the accident scene, hospitals and mortuaries on Tuesday morning.

“Reduced visibility in the early hours of the morning and dismembered body parts resulted in miscalculation by RTI and emergency personnel,” he said.

He said an updated report from the Road Traffic Inspectorate and SAPS confirmed seven men and three women died in the crash. Two more victims are in critical condition in hospital, three others are stable and 33 who were also in the bus have been examined and are mobile.

“I have also inspected the scene of the accident and witnessed a trail of destruction left behind. Innocent lives have been lost and the lives of many families have been altered and turned upside down.”

Both drivers are alive and receiving treatment in hospital.

Duma said they received conflicting versions from survivors on the cause of the accident and investigations are ongoing.

“There are allegations the bus driver tried to overtake. Other survivors have alleged he fell asleep at the steering wheel. We do not want to speculate at this stage. We are confident the investigation will shed light.”

The EFF has confirmed the victims were their supporters who were travelling home after the party’s Youth Day rally in Durban.

“The EFF sends its deepest condolences to the families and loved ones of all those who have lost their lives. These fighters lost their lives following a show of support for the revolution they belonged to and they must be remembered as heroes to whom we owe a great debt,” the party said in a statement on Tuesday.

“These were committed fighters who had attended the rally to honour the courage of the youth of 1976 and to continue the struggle for economic freedom.”

The party said it was working with relevant authorities to identify the deceased and support the families.

Duma confirmed he had conveyed condolences to EFF secretary-general Marshall Dlamini and the department was working with the party.

He expressed concern about the number of road accidents involving trucks in the province.

“Trucks are not supposed to be on this road in the first place and should be using the N2. Many innocent lives have been lost as a result of a huge number of trucks on our roads.”

He said Transnet had confirmed more than 303,000 trucks, averaging nearly 6,000 per week, had used its Richards Bay port in the 2024 financial year, while the port's infrastructure was originally designed for a much smaller volume of trucks, about 200 per day.

He emphasised the need to revitalise the rail network to move cargo and reduce road accidents, something national government is working on.

Meanwhile, Premier Thami Ntuli said the provincial government was worried about the causes of bus accidents in the province.

He said they needed to engage bus owners and drivers on problems such as speeding and overloading, ensuring that buses are in good condition and there are multiple drivers when the duration of trips demands it.

“It’s something that is very worrisome, we have lost many lives through bus accidents in KZN which speaks a lot to the bus conditions, behaviour of drivers and the issue of owners wanting to make more profit by overloading buses. Those are some of the things we need to address.”

He added they would also communicate with political parties to ensure they choose buses that are in good condition and avoid overloading when planning to host major events.