2015 horror crash: Bus driver sentenced

GEORGE NEWS - Nearly eight years after a horrific head-on accident involving a bakkie and an African Express bus claimed the lives of five people, the driver of the bus, Harrold Dzina (70), was sentenced on Thursday 1 June.

Dzina was handed down a five year suspended sentence and three years of correctional supervision in the George Regional Court.

All five charges of culpable homicide against him were merged for sentencing purposes after a formal 105A agreement with many mitigating factors was entered into.

"He is very remorseful, and did not want to put the involved families through trauma with an unnecessary trial. He has to live with this for the rest of his life and if he could he would compensate everyone financially. He is still working to support his family at the age of 70," said Dzina's attorney, Winston Jansen.

The accident

Pierre Heunis (41) was the driver of the oncoming bakkie that collided with the bus on Friday 30 October 2015. He did not survive.

Heunis was driving towards Great Brak River when another bakkie, travelling towards George, stopped to turn right at the turn-off to the municipal refuse site.

While waiting for a gap in the traffic, a truck stopped behind the bakkie who was waiting to turn. As Heunis passed the turn-off to the refuse site, the African Express bus that was coming up behind the stationary truck, was forced to swerve to avoid rear-ending the truck. It hit Heunis's bakkie head-on. The deceased, Willie Juries (43), Allister Muller (24), Delmor Treurnicht (40), Ruaan Smith (28) and Heunis were flung from their vehicle on impact.

The bakkie, fitted with a canopy and carrying members of a lift club, crashed with the bus at about 17:40. Jaydon Mapella (16), a learner at Van Kervel School at the time, sustained serious head and arm injuries as well as a cut to his stomach. He was moved from the ICU at George Hospital to a general ward two days after the accident.