Sowetan, Monday November 06, 2006 06:17 - (SA)
Selby Makgotho and Chester Makana
Seven people, including five ANC activists and a nine-month-old baby, died in two separate accidents during a downpour in Limpopo over the weekend.
The ANC activists, from Vhembe, died on Saturday afternoon when their car collided with a taxi.
The accident happened on the Thathe-Vondwe-Thohoyandou road at about 4.30pm.
One passenger died while paramedics were attending to him, police said.
In another accident, two vehicles collided on the Thohoyandou-Tshakhuma road in the early hours of Saturday.
The 40-year-old driver of one of the vehicles died at the scene. The passenger sustained minor injuries.
The driver of the other vehicle was taken to Polokwane Hospital in a critical condition. The nine-month-old child, believed to be the child of the critical patient, died instantly.
Police said the cause of the accidents had not yet been established.
It was believed that the slippery roads, after the heavy rain, were a factor.
Preliminary investigations indicate that the ANC activists were coming from a meeting about youth matters when the accident took place.
* A police spokesman from Vhembe said the names of the deceased could not be revealed until their next-of-kin had been notified.