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Raymond Jaravaza, [email protected] 

A kilometre stretch of road along the busy Bulawayo/Gwanda Highway, just after the Kensington shops heading into the city, has turned into a “death trap” after four accidents were recorded in the area in just two months. This prompted the Bulawayo Fire Brigade to launch an investigation for the presence of oil residue that causes the road to become slippery.

The Bulawayo Fire Brigade enlisted the Environmental Management Agency (EMA) to run tests on the stretch of road to check for the presence of oil residue. 

The results of the investigation indicated that there is no oil on the road.

Last Saturday, two passengers aboard an Inter Africa bus died on the spot when it veered off the road and overturned on the same stretch of road. 

Forty-three of the 50 passengers on the bus were injured and ferried to Mpilo Hospital for medical attention. The accident occurred near Umguza Bridge as the bus, travelling from Mutare, headed into the Bulawayo city centre.

Mpilo Central Hospital

Fire Brigade chief fire officer, Mr Mhlangano Moyo, said the investigation for the possible presence of oil residue on the road was initiated after calls from motorists grew louder, claiming that the stretch of road becomes very slippery when it rains, making driving a nightmare.

“Some time ago, a vehicle carrying containers with oil was involved in an accident in the same area. A thorough clean-up exercise of the road was done by the relevant authorities, but we have been getting complaints that maybe there is still some oil residue left on the road, which makes the road very slippery, especially when it rains,” said Mr Moyo.

“The Fire Brigade, together with EMA, conducted investigations and the results show that there is no oil residue present in the area. Even the vegetation along the road does not show any signs of being affected by the presence of oil.”

He added:

“Two haulage trucks, an Inter Africa bus, and a vehicle belonging to a non-governmental organisation, where three people were seriously injured, have been involved in accidents in the same area in two months, and that is very worrisome. The bus accident happened after the area received some rains.

“The Bulawayo Fire Brigade recommends that the road is resealed so that it doesn’t become slippery when it  rains. 

“I understand that a team from the Ministry of Transport and Infrastructural Development was on the ground on Monday to assess the road.”

The Fire Brigade chief also recommended speed humps to be erected on the road to force drivers to slow down when approaching the area. 

According to experts, roads typically get greasy during the hot and dry season due to the higher levels of oil created by high temperatures, and the bitumen in asphalt roads can also be compromised, bubbling up to the surface. 

As a result of slippery roads, drivers are at a higher risk of skidding around corners as the bitumen used to make roads becomes less stable due to high temperatures.