Six dead and more presumed missing after four vehicles wash off a bridge in Ermelo

Just before 11pm on Monday night, our Ermelo crews were dispatched to the scene of what was described by the caller as a motor vehicle accident on Lothair road. ER24 paramedics were first to arrive at the scene and what they found was a mass casualty and fatal incident.

A fully laden taxi, apparently on their way from Johannesburg, a bakkie, a BMW and another unknown vehicle, had been washed off a low level bridge. It appears that due to heavy rains and the continuous washing over of water across the bridge, the bridge had started to break away and it is possible that the vehicle’s drivers could not actually see the danger that lay ahead and they had proceeded to cross over the bridge when they were washed away.

As soon as the paramedics arrived on scene they called for backup, seeing the vehicles in the water, and in the darkness they began to find patients. Eight people were transported from the scene by ambulance for treatment of various injuries, and the SAP Search and Rescue team remained on scene. It was confirmed that six people had died in the incident and more are still presumed missing.

It is at this time not clear as to how many people had been in each vehicle at the time, or as to how many are still missing, but Search and Rescue remain at the scene.

- ER24