25 killed in Zimbabwe bus accident

At least 25 people were killed and 46 others injured Sunday in a head-on collision between two buses near Zimbabwean capital Harare, police said.

The two buses, one from the government-run Zimbabwe United Passenger Company (ZUPCO) and the other from Unifreight Africa Limited, collided on the Harare-Nyamanpanda highway about 35 km from the capital city, Xinhua quoted police spokesperson Charity Charamba as saying.

Initial police investigation showed that one of the buses crossed the lane and rammed through the other bus on its right-side. Charamba said 24 people died on spot while one person died on way to hospital, adding the injured were hospitalised in Harare.

"It is a very unfortunate accident that could have been avoided," Charamba said, adding that the crash happened in broad daylight and it was not raining hard, indicating the driver might have played a major part in the accident.

She said the police haven't concluded the investigation and it remained unclear whether the drivers were among the casualties.

The Harare-Nyamapanda road leading to Mozambique is one of the busiest highways in Zimbabwe.

It is the deadliest road accident in Zimbabwe since 2009, in which 30 people were killed. Deadly road accidents often occur in Zimbabwe due to poor road conditions, speeding, and the proliferation of poorly-maintained vehicles.