Thupeyo Muleya, Beitbridge Bureau
The remains of 29 Zimbabweans who are among the 44 people who died in a bus accident in South Africa, when a Harare-bound bus they were travelling in plunged into a cliff near Makhado town, are expected in the country today (Friday).
The bus was carrying Malawians and Zimbabweans.
Malawian and Zimbabwean embassies, with the help of relatives, identified 36 and eight of their nationals among the deceased, seven being young children.
In Zimbabwe, the bodies and their relatives will be met by Local Government Minister Daniel Garwe, Matabeleland South Minister of State for Provincial Affairs and Devolution Albert Nguluvhe and other senior Government officials for a mass memorial service at the local Doves Funeral Services parlour.
The Government is footing all the repatriation and medical costs for the victims of the horrific crash.
The entourage of hearses from Doves Funeral Services left Polokwane on Friday morning, being escorted by South Africa authorities and Zimbabwean embassy officials in that country.
In a statement, Limpopo provincial Government spokesperson Mr Ndavhe Rammakuela confirmed the latest development.
“The Limpopo Provincial Government has concluded the process leading to the repatriation of 29 Zimbabwean Nationals who were involved in the N1 Louis Trichardt accident on 12 October 2025. They will be transported to Zimbabwe today after all identification procedures are done,” said Mr Ramakuela.
“There are still seven children where the process of identification would still to be concluded as it requires specialised DNA identification. The provincial government is working with the Malawi government to finalise their list of 08 bodies that would still need to be repatriated”.
He said the finalisation follows the process of families identifying their loved ones on Monday this week where the Premier of Limpopo, Dr Phophi Ramathuba had joined the families as they identified their loved ones.
The premier has since commended the stakeholders involved in handling the accident and the repatriation processes for good collaboration and team work.
“We want to thank all teams from both the provincial and national governments that were involved in making this process bearable, helping the two countries in identifying their next of kin,” she said.
“Our words of appreciation go to the two embassies for full cooperation during this difficult process. This in a way would allow families to have closure as they now have an opportunity to bury their loved ones.”
