THE number of accidents that occurred during the Heroes and Defence Forces holidays increased from 134 in 2023 to 149 this year.
According to the police, the number of fatal accidents, however, decreased from 12 to 8.
In a statement yesterday, police national spokesperson Commissioner Paul Nyathi said the number of fatalities increased marginally from 15 to 16, while the number of injured people did not change much, with 76 reported in 2023 and 77 in 2024.
He said most of the accidents were caused by recklessness, mechanical faults, speeding and overtaking errors.
“For instance, in a fatal accident which occurred on August 13 at around 0645 hours at corner St Patrick’s and Seke roads, the accident was caused by an overtaking error,” he said.
On August 12 at around 10pm along the Magadzire-Dazi dust road near Nyangomba village, Tangwena in Nyanga a Nissan Caravan kombi carrying 12 passengers overturned after developing a mechanical fault.
Nyathi called on drivers to be patient on the road and also emphasised servicing of vehicles to ensure safe transportation of people and goods and save lives on the roads.