Twelve school pupils have died in South Africa after the minibus they were travelling in collided with a lorry south of the city of Johannesburg.
The crash happened on Monday morning at around 07:00 local time (05:00 GMT) in Vanderbijlpark, the local education authority said.
The 12 students had died at the scene, the authorities said on Tuesday – revising the figure of those killed down from 13 as was initially reported. Three others are being treated in intensive care with one of those being in a “critically unstable” condition.
Police said the minibus driver crashed into the lorry after attempting to overtake two vehicles . He has been discharged from hospital and is now in police custody.
Police spokesperson Mavela Masondo added that a case of culpable homicide would be opened.
Gauteng province’s education department said on Monday that the details of what happened to the lorry driver were “uncertain”.
Earlier, the provincial authorities had said 13 pupils had died – 11 at the scene and two later in hospital. A statement from Gauteng’s health department on Tuesday revised the death toll downwards, saying that all the fatalities happened at the site of the collision.
Fatal road collisions are common in South Africa, due to factors such as rampant speeding, reckless driving and poorly maintained vehicles.
In 2025, 11,418 people died in crashes – about 6% lower than a year earlier but still equivalent to an average of 31 deaths a day.
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa called Monday’s crash “distressing”.
“Our children are the nation’s most precious assets and we must do all we can – from observing the rules of the road to the quality of service providers appointed to transport scholars – to protect learners,” the president added.
