Easter, Independence Holiday Road Carnage: Accidents Rise, Deaths Fall

By Ilyana Sithole

The Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) has released its road traffic accident report for the combined Easter and Independence holidays of 2025 and recorded a shocking rise in the accidents and a marginal fall in the fatalities.

In a statement released earlier today, Commissioner Paul Nyathi reported that there were 384 traffic accidents during the holiday period which is a significant increase compared to the 286 accidents during the same time in 2024.

Although the total accidents rose exponentially, the number of road accidents which resulted in deaths fell slightly from 26 in 2024 to 21 in 2025. Consequently, the death toll fell marginally from 27 to 24. Nonetheless, the number of road accident victims who suffered injuries rose from 159 in 2024 to 178 this year.

From the proclamation, a terrible accident was witnessed on April 21 2025 at the 51-kilometer mark along the Harare-Bulawayo highway. Three individuals lost their lives immediately when an 18-seater Toyota Hiace Kombi skidded and overturned. When admitted to Norton Hospital, a fourth passenger succumbed to injuries. Fourteen others were injured in the same incident.

The ZRP also reported a concerning hit-and-run fatal crashes trend in which three were recorded during the festive season in Murewa and Harare.

The first occurred on April 19, 2025, on the Mutoko-Chidye dust road when a motorcyclist whose identity is yet to be determined knocked down a pedestrian who succumbed to injuries in hospital. The second incident happened on April 20, 2025, on the Harare-Bulawayo Road at Tynwald flyover when a male adult whose names were not mentioned was knocked to death by an unidentified vehicle. The same date, on the Harare-Bulawayo Road close to Whitehouse, at Puma filling station, a 66-year-old man was knocked down by a Nissan Caravan. He succumbed to the injuries on admission at Parirenyatwa Group Hospital, and the driver ran away from the scene.

Commissioner Nyathi also reiterated the appeal by ZRP for drivers to drive carefully on the road, observe all the traffic rules and regulations, and in case they are involved in an accident, pull over and assist. Drivers were requested by police to report road accidents during both day and night hours.

The rise in the overall number of accidents following a marginal decrease in the number of fatalities is alarming in terms of holiday travel road safety and calls for sustained attention and compliance with traffic laws.