TWO Gweru socialites died in a horrific road accident after a vehicle they were travelling in rammed a haulage truck’s trailer.
Tinashe Wena (30), an operations manager at Larochell Quarry and his friend John dos Santos (34) were in a Mazda 3 that rammed a haulage truck which was reversing from Zuva service station along Robert Mugabe way at around 5AM on Saturday.
The two friends were coming from a popular night spot in Gweru when the accident occurred.
Wena and Dos Santos are said to have been friends to the late Alistair Shingirai Mukosera, another Gweru socialite who died in April in an accident as he was coming from a party.
Acting Midlands police spokesperson Assistant Inspector Ethel Mukwende confirmed the accident.
“I can confirm that there was an accident that happened on Saturday morning involving a Mazda 3 and a haulage truck. The light vehicle crashed under the trailer of a haulage truck trapping the two occupants who died on the spot,” said Asst Insp Mukwende.
The wreckage of the Mazda 3 in which they were travelling
Wena’s brother Malvern expressed shock at the untimely death of his sibling.
He said the Wena and Dos Santos families were still trying to come to terms with the sudden deaths of the two friends.
Malvern said the deceased had been friends to the late Mukosera, who also died in an accident.
“We are still in a state of shock and can’t believe what happened. We hear that they were coming from Bowling Club and getting into town to look for food when tragedy struck. We were told that there was mist and due to poor visibility their vehicle rammed underneath a haulage truck trailer. The haulage truck was reversing from Zuva garage into Robert Mugabe Road,” he said.
“Tinashe was full of life and determination. Funeral arrangements are underway.”
An eye witness told The Chronicle that the Mazda 3 was speeding and failed to stop in time to avoid the accident.
“I saw the Mazda 3 travelling at a very high speed and the severity of the crash testifies to the fact that it was speeding at the same time a haulage truck was reversing from Zuva garage into Robert Mugabe road. Visibility was also poor because of mist. Due to poor visibility and speeding, the driver of the light vehicle failed to stop and the car smashed into a haulage truck that was reversing from the garage,” said Mr Amos Chinembiri, an airtime vendor.-Chronicle
