Another tragedy has hit the South African Defence Force (SANDF) after four of its members died during an accident in the semi-arid Northern Cape on Thursday afternoon.
The four members were from the 8 Sai (8th South African Infantry) Battalion in Upington and they were on their way to an exercise of the army in the town of Lohatla.
The exercise is called Vukuhlome and it involves several battalions of the SANDF. The accident happened around 1pm.
learnt through sources within the army that two other SANDF personnel were critically injured during the accident.
JUST IN: Another tragedy has hit the SANDF after soldiers (believed to be 4) died in an accident in the Northern Cape around 1pm on Thursday. The dead soldiers are from the 8 Sai Battalion and they were travelling from Upington to Lohatla where there is an army event. @ pic.twitter.com/bEoelSRRh1
— Sihle Mavuso (@ZANewsFlash) September 21, 2023
During the same accident, nine other members of the army were also slightly injured and they were transferred to Dr Harry Surtie Hospital in Upington.
According to an internal memo from the army about the accident, one of the military trucks broke down and it had to be towed by another one.
While being towed, the military truck at the back got a tyre bust, causing both trucks to roll. During the rolling, the army officers were ejected and some were crushed by their truck and died on the scene.
The accident comes a day after a marine off the Western Cape coast claimed the lives of three SA Navy crew members while others were evacuated.
The SANDF confirmed the incident via a statement and said families of the deceased have been notified of the incident.
Politics
