This follows
the positive identification of their remains by relatives at the Siloam
Hospital Mortuary on Monday morning.
The
heartbreaking identification lasted the full day with South African forensic
and pathological teams having worked hard through the weekend to restore and
preserve most of the badly damaged remains.
In the
aftermath of the bus accident, 30 adult Zimbabweans and six children perished
when the bus carrying Malawians and Zimbabweans heading to Harare and Malawi
plunged into a cliff outside Makhado town along the N1 road on Sunday last
week.
The crash also
claimed eight Malawian men, one woman, and one child.
A total of 40
other people were injured in the crash. As of Monday, 12 Zimbabweans and seven
Malawians were still admitted in various hospitals in Limpopo Province.
Zimbabwe’s
Charge d’Affaires in the neighbouring country, Mr Shepard Gwenzi, confirmed the
latest development, saying they expect the repatriation process to be concluded
this week.
“On 20 October,
the physical identification of the deceased was successfully conducted at
Siloam Hospital Mortuary with all the bodies positively identified by next of
kin,” he said.
“It’s expected
that the bodies would be handed over to Doves Funeral Services on 21 October
2025 for embalming in preparation for repatriation to Zimbabwe for burial.”
Limpopo’s
premier, Dr Phophi Ramathuba, said on Monday that the bodies’ identification
process will be thorough to ensure no family collects a wrong body for burial.
The process was done in three parts, that is, using photography, physical
identification and fingerprint verification and DNA tests with respect to the
seven children. Chronicle
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