Two people, including a University of Namibia (Unam) student and a Zimbabwean university delegate, died in a road accident involving participants of an international research conference along the Katima Mulilo-Ngoma road on Saturday morning.
The accident occurred at around 07h00 at Mubiza when a Toyota Land Cruiser carrying 10 people travelling towards Botswana reportedly suffered a tyre burst, causing the driver to lose control before the vehicle overturned.
Zambezi regional police commander Commissioner Julia Sakuwa-Neo said the vehicle carried university staff members and conference participants travelling from Katima Mulilo to Botswana.
The deceased were a 48-year-old Zimbabwean man, a delegate from the National University of Science and Technology (Nust) in Zimbabwe, and a 20-year-old Namibian woman who was a Unam student.
Sakuwa-Neo said the vehicle was driven by a 45-year-old Zimbabwean man, while the other occupants sustained injuries ranging from serious to minor.
The injured included Zimbabwean and Namibian nationals aged between 23 and 61.
“Some of the occupants were in Namibia attending a conference at Unam and were returning to their country,” Sakuwa-Neo said in a statement.
Unam confirmed the deaths in a statement expressing sadness over the loss of two members of the KAZA Universities Consortium Research Conference, which its Katima Mulilo Campus hosted from 12 to 16 October.
The university said the vehicle was transporting conference delegates and students to Victoria Falls Airport when the accident occurred.
The university added that the injured occupants were receiving medical care and that it was supporting the affected families, the injured and its partner institutions.
Unam Vice Chancellor Professor Kenneth Matengu expressed condolences to the bereaved families and those affected by the tragedy.
“Last week the Katima Mulilo Campus welcomed people from five countries who came to work on something shared. On Saturday morning, two of them did not get to go home,” Matengu said.
He said the university’s thoughts were with the deceased’s families, the injured and everyone who knew them, adding that the affected families should be given space to grieve.
The university urged the public and media to respect the privacy and dignity of the bereaved families and those receiving treatment. It also cautioned against sharing images or unverified information before the university informed the families and released verified details.
“The circumstances of the accident are being investigated by the relevant authorities, and we will not speculate about the cause,” the university said.
Sakuwa-Neo had earlier said the next of kin had not yet been informed when the police issued the statement.
The relevant authorities are still investigating the circumstances of the accident. -anakale@nepc.com.na
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