The eyewitness told The Standard that the Volvo haulage truck was attempting to overtake another vehicle when it collided head-on with a kombi.
Eyewitnesses have narrated gory scenes at the site of the accident involving 27 members of an Apostolic sect on Friday night along the Harare-Beitbridge highway, amid revelations that people were trapped in the burning commuter omnibus.
Police said the accident, involving the commuter omnibus carrying members of the African Apostolic (Mwazha) Church and a foreign-registered Volvo haulage truck, occurred at the 123-kilometre peg near the Makumimavi area outside Chivhu.
An eyewitness, who spoke to The Standard at the scene on condition of anonymity, alleged that a miscalculation by the truck driver may have caused the accident.
The eyewitness told The Standard that the Volvo haulage truck was attempting to overtake another vehicle when it collided head-on with a kombi.
Twenty-four people died at the scene, while three others succumbed to their injuries at Chivhu General Hospital.
Authorities said seven survivors had since been transferred to Chitungwiza General Hospital.
The eyewitness, who was travelling on the road at around 8 pm, said the truck was loaded with mining equipment.
“The accident occurred at around 8pm when we were passing through the road,” the eyewitness said.
“A fire broke out as a result of the collision of the truck that was loading mining equipment and a kombi with church congregates.
“People in the kombi were trapped and found it difficult to move out of the burning vehicle.
“So we had to pick some other bodies of the deceased that were scattered in the road as well as broken pieces of the burning vehicles left in the road.”
Police spokesperson Paul Nyathi confirmed the accident but said the number of passengers in both vehicles remains unknown.
“A Nissan Caravan NV350 kombi carrying an unspecified number of passengers was involved in a head-on collision with a Volvo Haulage Truck carrying an unknown number of passengers,” Nyathi said in a statement.
He added that the names of the victims will be released once the bodies are identified by their next of kin.
President Emmerson Mnangagwa has since declared a state of disaster, a move that Local Government and Public Works Minister Daniel Garwe said would enable the government to mobilise resources and coordinate assistance for affected families.
“The declaration of a state of disaster will enable government to mobilise the necessary resources and coordinate interventions to assist the affected families and survivors,” Garwe said.
The government extended its condolences to the bereaved families and members of the African Apostolic (Mwazha) Church, and wished the injured a speedy recovery.
The accident adds to the number of casualties this month, following the Kariba boat disaster that claimed 97 lives and other fatal accidents across the country.
