President honours 14 killed in head-on crash at Mariental

President Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah says the dedication and service of the police and Namibian Correctional Service (NCS) officers who died in a head-on collossion at Mariental on Saturday will forever be remembered.

A total of 14 lives were lost along the B1 highway approximately 10km from Mariental towards Kalkrand in the Hardap region when a police vehicle and an NCS vehicle were involved in a suspected head-on collision.

The accident reportedly took place at around 07h00.

Nandi-Ndaitwah says the officers, together with the civilian victims, were part of the Namibian family, and their deaths leave a void that will not be easily filled.

“Our nation grieves alongside you. On behalf of the people and the government of the Republic of Namibia, I extend sincere condolences to the families of the deceased. Our nation also keeps in our prayers the three members of the Namibia Correctional Service who are critically injured.

“We wish them strength and a full recovery,” the president says.

Deputy commissioner John Mwatongela, the head of crime investigations in the Hardap region, says a police van and an NCS van are suspected to have been involved in a head-on collision.

He says the police van was carrying six passengers, including five officers and a civilian, while the correctional service vehicle had 13 people on board.

“Eleven members of the Namibia Correctional Service, one member of the Namibian Police, and two civilians died in the accident,” Mwatongela says.

Some 10 other vehicle occupants were injured and transported to a hospital at Mariental. Of these, three NCS members are said to be critically injured.

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