Gauteng Education spokesperson Steve Mabona says they are providing psychosocial support to the schools and parents who lost loved ones in the accident that claimed the lives of 12 learners in the Vaal area on Monday morning.
Speaking to the media this morning, Mabona said psycho-social support teams have already been dispatched to schools impacted by the tragedy.
“So, we have started with the process of psycho support, the school has been taken through the process. Actually, we have sent the psycho support to all the schools that are affected,” Mabona said.
He announced that Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi is expected to brief the nation later on Tuesday on the latest developments following the tragic scholar transport accident.
The Gauteng Department of Education said counselling services have been deployed to all affected schools, while government works with families to finalise identification processes and provide ongoing support.
He said the support will prioritise learners and educators who were closest to the deceased.
“We'll normally identify those that are closer to the deceased, meaning the classmates and the educators that would have taught these children… and start with that process of psycho support, and then we monitor it,” he said.
Providing clarity on the death toll, Mabona confirmed that 12 learners died in the crash, revising earlier figures that indicated 13 fatalities.
“We might have released different numbers, but we can confirm that the number of learners that passed on is 12. And out of the 12, we have one child that is unidentified,” he said.
He explained that the department is working with officials alongside families to complete the identification process of the unidentified child.
Mabona confirmed that three learners remain in hospital, with one having been airlifted to a private medical facility due to the severity of injuries, while another learner has since been discharged.
“In hospital we have three learners, one was airlifted to a private facility because the situation there was quite dire, so the family decided to lift that child to a private hospital,” he said.
He added that the driver of the scholar transport minibus taxi involved has been discharged from hospital and handed over to police. He faces charges of culpable homicide.
Mabona said the MEC for Education in Gauteng, Matome Chiloane, will be visiting affected families as they complete processes at the government mortuary, while a comprehensive briefing by the Premier and affected MECs is scheduled for later in the afternoon.
Addressing public speculation and misinformation, Mabona appealed for respect at accident scenes and sensitivity towards grieving families.
“You might have seen at that active scene yesterday some family members and community members wanting to go closer to their loved ones and that might have been a challenge for the authorities, because we are reporting different numbers due to the unconfirmed reports.
"Later on, we had to add the numbers, and it turned out one child was found on the scene under the car. That’s why it’s important for members of the community even if we are grieving, to know that an active scene must be respected. We need to give authorities the space to carry out their work,” he said.
He also condemned the circulation of AI-generated images and inaccurate content on social media.
“We have families that are grieving… you are giving a different picture altogether, circulating graphics that are not accurate,” Mabona said.
Mabona said the names and images of the deceased learners would only be released with the consent of their families.
“We are hopeful that after interacting with the families with the MEC, they will grant us permission to publicise the names, because we need to talk about people identified. They have names and they must be celebrated,” he said.
The learners who died in the crash attended Vaal High School, Vaal Primary School, Suncrest High School, El-Shaddai Christian School, Hoërskool Vanderbijlpark and Oliver Lodge Primary School.
Police investigations into the circumstances surrounding the crash are ongoing. - SAnews.gov.za
