A truck carrying a load of copper plates collided with approximately four vehicles before overturning onto a light motor vehicle at the M7 and N2 intersection.
Image: ALS Paramedics
KwaZulu-Natal MEC for Transport and Human Settlements, Siboniso Duma, said the Zambian national truck driver involved in a collision on the M7 and N2, which claimed one life on Wednesday, will face the full might of the law.
Duma said the truck was registered in Zambia, and law enforcement agencies must ensure the driver does not flee after being treated in hospital for his injuries.
The MEC recalled that in September 2025, the Road Traffic Inspectorate (RTI) arrested an undocumented Zambian truck driver attempting to flee after a collision near the Cliffdale/Peacevale offramp in KwaZulu-Natal.
Garrith Jamieson, the spokesperson for ALS Paramedics Medical Services, said a truck carrying copper plates collided with approximately four vehicles before overturning onto a light motor vehicle.
According to Jamieson, the trailer came down on the vehicle, trapping the truck driver in the wreckage. Following the removal of the trailer, a woman was discovered dead inside the car.
The M7 links the N3 in Pinetown with the Durban Port, the south, and the Bluff. The majority of heavy-duty trucks use this road.
eThekwini Councillor Jay Singh, who has been vocal about inadequate safety measures on the route, renewed his call for the establishment of the M7 Task Team. Singh said it was no longer a matter of concern but a full-blown crisis.
“There is a need for implementation of a time-bound, outcome-driven action plan with intensified enforcement and monitoring. If there are challenges preventing progress, these must be communicated transparently. What we cannot accept is continued silence and inaction while lives are being lost,” he said.
Duma highlighted that in November, RTI also arrested an undocumented Zimbabwean driver after his truck plunged into four other trucks and a car on the N3 before Mariannhill Toll Plaza.
He said both the Department of Transport (DoT) and the Department of Human Settlements are implementing a programme of action focusing on addressing concerns raised by the people of KZN.
“We are highlighting these collisions just to reflect on the challenges of undocumented foreign nationals on our road networks. We are acting decisively against these drivers,” Duma said.
He added that since the launch of #NenzaniLaEzweni Operation, RTI has arrested more than 25 undocumented foreign nationals. These include truck drivers and motorbike delivery riders. The DoT impounded more than 15 abnormal load trucks transporting undeclared and unverified goods by undocumented foreign nationals.
“They were sentenced and jailed at the Pietermaritzburg Correctional Centre New Prison and at Westville Correctional Services Centre before their deportation,” he said.
Duma reiterated his warning that truck company owners must not employ illegal immigrants.
“It will be an abdication of our responsibility as the deployees of the ANC not to speak against exploitative practices, financial fraud, and human rights violations involving certain players in the logistics and freight industry.”
Duma said the DoT will ensure that road networks are not used to transport drugs, illicit goods, human trafficking, and cross-border crime in general.
The KZN DoT found that after interviewing foreign truck drivers, there was no existing relationship between truck drivers and trucking companies, because there are no written contracts.
Also, they have to use certain routes at night to avoid detection, drivers are paid per load, and their hours of work are long, violating the Basic Conditions of Employment Act.
The DoT found that there were no payslips, basic salary, overtime payments, rest days, or leave days provided to these foreign truck drivers.
“We have noted an increasing lack of co-operation with the Department of Home Affairs Immigration Unit, resulting in the release of many undocumented foreign truck drivers arrested by RTI,” Duma said.
Department of Home Affairs Minister, Leon Schreiber, announced on Wednesday that over 600,000 individuals have been deported from South Africa, for either attempting to illegally enter the country or for being in the interior of the country.
zainul.dawood@inl.co.za
Following the removal of the trailer, a woman was discovered dead inside the car.
Image: ALS Paramedics