A two-year-old boy is fighting for his life in intensive care after a horrific crash on the N1 claimed 21 lives, including that of his father, who was taking him from Cape Town to meet his grandparents in the Eastern Cape.
The child, Omila, was travelling with his father, 28-year-old Onelihle Sihlwayi, when two minibus taxis and a station wagon collided on the N1 between Leeu-Gamka and the R353 turn-off leading to Prince Albert in the Western Cape.
The crash happened at about 23:30 on Sunday. Sihlwayi died at the scene, while his young son was rushed to hospital. The boy was later taken to Red Cross War Memorial Children’s Hospital in Cape Town, where he remains in the intensive care unit in a serious condition.
The family is now facing the unbearable pain of mourning a father while waiting beside his injured child.
Sihlwayi’s uncle, Thamsanqa Skati, said the young father had been travelling with a clear purpose. He wanted to take his son to Ngxaxha Village in Tlokoeng, formerly known as Mount Fletcher, so that his parents could meet the boy in person for the first time.
“Onelihle was taking the boy to the village to physically show him to his parents. The boy’s mother was left in Cape Town,” Skati said.
Instead of returning home with his child after spending time with his family, Sihlwayi’s journey ended at the crash scene.
“Unfortunately, Onelihle died on the spot. The boy was taken to the Red Cross hospital. He is in a bad state, with his mother constantly updating us,” Skati said.
Sihlwayi worked as a security guard and was remembered by his uncle as a focused and determined person. His family had expected him to spend a few days in the village before travelling back to Cape Town with his son.
“It is so painful to process his death. He was going to spend a few days in the village and then come back with his son. Unfortunately, his journey will continue in a coffin,” Skati said.
Fifteen of the people who died were travelling in one of the minibus taxis, including the driver. They were all believed to be travelling towards Tlokoeng in the Eastern Cape’s Elundini Local Municipality.
The victims were not simply passengers making a long journey. They were members of families, neighbours and communities who had been travelling towards home. Their deaths have left relatives waiting for news, identification and the return of their loved ones’ remains.
The Mount Fletcher Taxi Association said it was assisting families during the difficult arrangements. The remains were still being kept in a government mortuary in the Western Cape, with plans in place to transport them closer to their homes in the Eastern Cape on Friday.
Nyameko Mamba, chairperson of the Mount Fletcher Taxi Association, said the scale of the loss had overwhelmed the association and the families it serves.
“We have never seen something like this before,” Mamba said. “It is not easy to deal with families who have lost their loved ones, in particular on this magnitude. It’s a very painful period for us.”
Mamba said the victims were far more than taxi commuters to the association. They were people whose daily lives were connected to the business and the long-distance routes that carry families between the Western Cape and the Eastern Cape.
“These are human beings who are the backbone of our business. That is why we are doing whatever is in our power to make sure that we assist their families.”
He said the association’s plans involved collecting the remains from the government mortuary and transporting them closer to their families in Mount Fletcher. The process was expected to take place on Friday, allowing relatives to begin making funeral arrangements and preparing to lay their loved ones to rest.
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Among the victims was 49-year-old taxi driver Telile Telile. His brother, Thabo Telile, said he received a call during the early hours of Monday informing him that Telile had been involved in a crash.
The first message was difficult to process. The caller told him that his brother had been badly injured and had died.
“I got a call in the early hours on Monday from a taxi driver who informed me that Telile was involved in an accident. The taxi driver told me that my brother was badly injured and had lost his life. I was numb and did not know how to react,” Telile said.
He described his brother as a responsible man who had worked as a taxi driver for many years. Telile had a live-in partner and one child. To his brother’s knowledge, he had never been involved in a major accident during his years on the road.
The family was familiar with his long-distance routine. Telile would send his brother a WhatsApp voice note to let him know about his journey, a small habit that now carries painful meaning for the family.
“He had a live-in partner with one child. He had been a taxi driver for many years and had never had any major accident, to my knowledge. He would always send me a WhatsApp voice note to inform me about his journey as he was a long-distance [driver],” Telile said.
The tragedy has also deeply affected the Elundini municipality, where many of the victims came from. Elundini Mayor Nonkongozelo Ruth Lengs conveyed her condolences to the families and said the municipality was mourning alongside the Tlokoeng community.
A statement issued by the municipality said 15 of those who died came from the Tlokoeng area. The mayor said the community stood united with the families during the period of mourning.
“The mayor is also saddened to learn that 15 of the lives that were lost are from Elundini’s Tlokoeng area. The mayor said that as part of the community, she shares in the grief and stands united in this time of mourning,” the municipality said.
The municipality added that no words could fully ease the pain of such a loss, but hoped the families would find comfort in the support of the wider community.
“Mayor Lengs expressed her thoughts that no words can adequately ease the pain of such loss, but may the families find solace in knowing that the entire municipality holds them in their thoughts and prayers, honouring the lives lost.”
The full circumstances surrounding the collision have not been detailed. What is known is that the crash involved two minibus taxis and a station wagon on the N1 late on Sunday night, with 21 people losing their lives and a toddler left critically injured.
As the remains are prepared for the journey east, families are being forced to make funeral plans while one mother waits for updates from the hospital on her son. The tragedy has taken away fathers, brothers, drivers and loved ones, leaving communities in both provinces to carry a loss that began with a journey home.
