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Paramedics attend to Mr John Ndlovu (64) who was hit by a BMW (out of picture) at a zebra crossing near the ZITF grounds in Bulawayo on Thursday

Whinsley Masara, Chronicle Reporter
A 64-YEAR-OLD man from Bulawayo sustained serious head injuries after he was hit by a car at a zebra crossing near the ZITF grounds in the city.

Mr John Ndlovu of Pumula East suburb was hit by a silver BMW vehicle that was being driven by Miss Temptation Matenga (26) who resides in the city centre.

The accident occurred at around 10AM on Thursday.

Miss Matenga, who was allegedly speeding, said she panicked after seeing Mr Ndlovu at close range.

She said the car hit the man before veering off the road, hitting a pillar and crashing into a precast wall.

“I applied emergency brakes but I think the sound caused the man to panic. He confused me and I hit him. He flew into the air and crashed onto the windscreen before sliding onto the ground.

“I panicked even more and instead of stopping the car I found myself going off road, towards the wall and I crashed,” said Miss Matenga.

Mr Ndlovu bled profusely from a gash on his head and some bruises on his right arm.

A nurse, who was passing by, stopped and rendered first aid to the injured man as they waited for an ambulance team which arrived about 30 minutes later.

A pedestrian, Mr Victor Mambo, said Mr Ndlovu was crossing the road from Gate 4 at the ZITF.

He said he had earlier spotted Mr Ndlovu in a queue to collect pensioners’ allowances at NetOne in the ZITF arena.

“The old man attempted to cross the road at the zebra crossing when he was hit. He landed on his side,” said Mr Mambo.

When the ambulance crew arrived more than 30 minutes later, pedestrians at the scene couldn’t hide their anger.

“A person will end up dying. This old man bled a lot and had it not been for the nurse who came by and rendered first aid, he could have died.

“You guys need to take your job seriously and show concern for people’s lives,” said a fuming pedestrian.

Ndlovu was taken to the United Bulawayo Hospitals (UBH). — @winnie_masara