There have been harrowing accounts from survivors of the moment when a speeding truck came off the road and hit into a pub at Buseko Market in Lusaka on Friday night. Most of the victims are said to have been watching a game of soccer when the accident happened. According to police, 12 people are now known to have died in the accident. The truck, belonging to BHL, was being driven by Elias Chikwenda, 34, of Kabwe. He, too, suffered a fractured left arm and is admitted to University Teaching Hospital (UTH).

According to police, the driver lost control as he was trying to avoid a truck that was reversing into Lumumba Road. The Road Transport and Safety Agency (RTSA) has blamed the accident on excessive speeding. In a statement yesterday, President Lungu conveyed his condolences to the grieving families, and wished the injured a quick recovery.

But he also repeated his call on the RTSA to intensify patrols to avert such accidents. And speaking from his hospital bed, one of the survivors said he had to crawl away from the accident scene for fear that he might be put among the dead. Watema Maliti said: “It was like a dream and I didn’t even get my change.

All I saw were objects falling on me and I crawled through the wreckage to safety.” Mr Maliti said he had gone to the tavern to change some money when he heard a loud bang and the breaking of bottles. Mr Maliti narrated that when he heard sirens of emergency vehicles and people talking about the people who had died, he hid in the grass for fear of being added to the pile of those
who had died.

Mr Maliti was only discovered yesterday morning from where he was hiding by his brother, who took him to the (UTH). He is nursing injuries on his neck, head and legs. Another survivor, Mathews Mwanza, 28, of Lilanda, who sustained a broken right leg, said it was a miracle that he survived. “That night, I was drinking at the tavern while watching football when we heard a bang. The next thing I remember was being under a truck,” Mwanza said.

He said he only realised that he had a broken leg when he tried to walk after being rescued. Elias Simukonda of George Township said he is worried because his family still did not know that he is admitted to UTH after surviving the accident. He sustained cuts on his legs and face. And a taxi driver, Joseph Zulu, who operates at the market, said he lost two of his colleagues, identified as Steve and Michael in the accident.

“I cannot believe that the two friends I was chatting with yesterday [Friday] have died,” he said. He said the two drivers were standing on the road side, chatting when they met their fate. Another witness, Madaliso Banda, said a bus conductor only identified as Chabala, who had stopped at Buseko bus stop to pick a customer on the side of the road, was also killed by the truck.

Lusaka Mayor Miles Sampa is disappointed that it took an hour for an ambulance to get to the scene. Mr Sampa said when it arrived, there was no medical personnel to assist those who were injured with first aid. By 23:00 hours – four hours after the accident happened – a combined team of fire brigade, police and the RTSA officers had managed to remove all the bodies trapped under the truck. Also to lend a hand was a team of fire fighters from the United States who recently delivered fire trucks donated to the Esther Lungu Foundation. UTH public relations officer Natalie Mashikolo described the condition of those admitted at UTH as stable.

She said six of the 10 bodies at UTH mortuary have been identified by relatives. Meanwhile, Government, through the Disaster Management and Mitigation Unit, says it will take care of all funeral costs. Some people took advantage of the situation and started looting some shops situated near the tavern. The situation was brought under control by police officers, who chased away the looters. Yesterday, the market was still under a sombre mood, and some youths could be heard still calling out the names of their missing friends at the tavern