SA Accident Update - Authorities to Use Pictures and Fingerprint Verifications to Identify Victims

The Limpopo Provincial Government in South Africa says they have commenced with the identification of the bodies of the 43 people who died i...

The Limpopo Provincial Government in South Africa says they have commenced with the identification of the bodies of the 43 people who died in a bus accident on Sunday in Makhado town.

The process, among other things, will include taking pictures and the use of the fingerprint verification system.

In a statement on Wednesday, Limpopo provincial Government spokesperson, Mr Ndavhe Ramakuela confirmed the development.

"The Limpopo provincial Government has provided an update on progress made on the N1 Louis Trichardt bus accident, especially the identification processes of the remains," he said.

The bus, traveling from the Eastern Cape to Zimbabwe, carried 91 passengers when it veered off the Zoutpanesburg mountain on Sunday.

"Of the occupants, 43 lost their lives, 40 received medical attention in different medical facilities, while eight self-discharged," said Mr Ramakuela.

"As of Tuesday, 17 families had arrived at Tshilidzini Hospital to identify their loved ones.

"The identification process will continue on Wednesday (15 October 2025) at the very hospital for the remaining families.

The victim identification team has taken photographs of all the deceased and the provincial government is encouraging families who are searching for their loved ones to visit the hospital as part of family identification".

He added that the Victim Identification will also start with the process of collecting fingerprint sets from all the bodies.

It is anticipated that by Wednesday, the Forensic Pathology teams will have concluded with the post-mortem examinations.

Mr Ramakuela said they are working with authorities from both Zimbabwe and Malawi.

He said they were hopeful that they would be able to run a fingerprints comparison on their side since some of the deceased do not even have identification documents.

This process, he said, remains tedious to make sure all the remains land in the hands of the correct families.

"It is only then that they will be able to repatriate them for their families to have their final closure," he said.

He added that to date, 19 patients have been discharged from Siloam, Louis Trichardt Memorial and Elim hospitals to reconnect with their families in Zimbabwe and Malawi.

The Premier Dr Phophi Ramathuba said authorities were thus far satisfied with the work done by their teams.

"This is a difficult period, especially for the families hence as the provincial government our focus is to assist those injured to recover and for the positive identification of the deceased for their families to find closure," she said.

"Investigations into the cause of the accident will take time as we analyse why the bus travelled such a long distance with so many passengers."

The premier said ongoing investigations by SAPS will focus on culpable homicide while the Road Traffic Management Corporation will finalise a technical report on the accident's cause.

In addition, the Department of Transport has also started engaging with Zimbabwean authorities on cross-border transport compliance.

The Premier also thanked Members of the Executive Council, who convened today, for the various roles they played in assisting in this tragic accident since it was announced on Sunday.

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