The accident happened around 6pm on Sunday on the N1 motorway near the town of Louis Trichard, about 400 kilometers north of the capital Pretoria, according to the Associated Press.
The Ministry of Transport said in a statement that the victims included seven children, 17 men and 18 women. The statement said six people were seriously injured and another 31 people were taken to multiple hospitals with serious injuries. The ministry said one seriously injured child was airlifted to a hospital.
Images released by authorities showed the blue bus lying upside down on an embankment as rescue workers searched for victims underneath. The Limpopo provincial government said rescue operations continued until late Sunday night.
The transport ministry said the bus was bound for Zimbabwe, carrying Zimbabweans and Malawians heading to their home countries. The cause of the crash is not yet known.
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa said in a statement: “My deepest condolences go to the countries of Zimbabwe and Malawi for the loss of their compatriots.”
Master’s degree/PR