Eighteen people died in separate road traffic accidents which occurred over the weekend along some of the country’s major highways amid signs of a bloody Christmas period.

In an accident that happened Sunday, six people died when a Honda Fit vehicle with eight passengers on board was involved in a head-on-collision with a Toyota KZ Double cab vehicle which had three passengers on board.

Four people died on the spot while two others died on the way to the hospital.

Police said Monday, “The ZRP reports a fatal road traffic accident which occurred on 19/12/22 at around 1000 hours at the 111 km peg along Harare- Bulawayo Road in which six people died while seven others were injured.”

Police said bodies of the victims were taken to Chegutu District Hospital Mortuary for postmortem, while the injured are admitted at the same hospital.

In another road tragedy that occurred Saturday, four people died when a Toyota Quest with six passengers collided with a Scania Irza bus along the Bulawayo-Gwanda road.

“The ZRP reiterates that drivers should exercise caution when driving on the roads,” police said in a statement.

“On 17/12/22, ZRP Gwanda recorded a fatal road traffic accident which occurred at the 92 km peg along Bulawayo-Beitbridge Road where a motorist driving a Toyota Quest vehicle towards Bulawayo, with six passengers on board, encroached onto the oncoming lane resulting in a collision with a Scania Irza bus which was travelling towards Beitbridge and a Mazda Sedan vehicle, with five passengers on board, travelling towards Bulawayo.

“Four passengers who were in the Toyota Quest car died on the spot, while five people were injured,” police said.

In another case, two people died in a road traffic accident where a motorist driving a Renault Chendero vehicle collided with a bus after trying to overtake the bus while there was an oncoming vehicle at the 60 km peg along Masvingo- Beitbridge Road on 17/12/22 at 0700 hours.

Similarly, on Friday at 1920 hours, two people died when a motorist driving a Freightliner truck lost control of the vehicle and encroached onto the oncoming lane where the truck crashed four vehicles, Toyota Raum, Toyota Vitz, Nissan Caravan, and a Toyota Landcruiser Prado.

The accident occurred along Harare- Mutare Road, near NOIC Mabvuku. Elsewhere, four people died following a horrific road traffic accident involving three motor vehicles along Old Mazowe Road at Willowcreak, Harare on Friday.

Four others are battling life threatening injuries.

Police have indentified the deceased as Edson Charangwa a male adult who was driving a maroon mazda 3 registration.

He lost his life along with passengers Moffat Tizora, Cosmas Abiru and Malachia Madimutsa, a sales consultant at Leengate land developers.

-Kukurigo