Top stories

Zimbabwe roads claimed 1,979 lives in nine months

By , based on Zimbabwe Independent

Map: Zimbabwe

Road accidents killed 1,979 people and injured 8,061 in Zimbabwe during the first nine months of 2026, in a total of 48,150 collisions. The Traffic Safety Council of Zimbabwe attributes 94% of accidents to human error, including speeding, drink-driving, distraction and dangerous overtaking, reports the Zimbabwe Independent.

Zimbabwe recorded 1,979 deaths and 8,061 injuries in 48,150 road accidents during the first nine months of 2026. Human error was involved in 94% of accidents, according to the Traffic Safety Council of Zimbabwe (TSCZ), whose director-general, Munesu Munodawafa, presented the figures on 29 October.

Speeding, drink-driving, distraction and dangerous overtaking were among the main risk factors identified by the TSCZ. The figures come after a ferry sank on Lake Kariba, killing 97 people on 27 September, another deadly disaster in Zimbabwe this year.

Share this article

Related stories

Train crash kills 69 in Spain

The collision between two high-speed trains in Spain killed 74 people, according to France 24 Afrique and IOL, compared with at least 68 according to La Presse de Tunisie. Le Monde reports that King Felipe VI visited the victims. A month before parliamentary elections, the disaster, the deadliest on Spain’s rail network since 2013, has revived questions about maintenance and passenger safety.

🇪🇸 Spain · Source: France 24 ·

Spain begins three days of mourning after 68 deaths

Spain has begun three days of national mourning after the collision near Urda on 28 October 2026 between two high-speed trains on the Madrid-Seville line killed 68 people and injured more than 100, according to TelQuel, Lebrief and AIB. Initial reports point to a security-system failure and the resumption of traffic, while Renfe, Iryo and Pedro Sánchez’s government face questions over their responsibility. Rescuers are continuing their search and a comprehensive investigation has been announced.

🇪🇸 Spain · Source: TelQuel ·

Felipe VI visits those injured in Spain train crash

Spain’s King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia visited those injured in the Urda train accident at Toledo University Hospital. Fifteen patients are in intensive care after an accident that killed at least 69 people, France 24 reports. Le Monde says the tragedy comes a month before the general election.

🇪🇸 Spain · Source: France 24 ·

Recordings shed light on human error in Spanish crash

Recordings released after two high-speed trains collided at Urda, Spain, strengthen the theory of human error in the accident that killed 68 people. The control centre had authorised the AVE train to resume its journey despite reported technical problems with the Iryo train, reports L’essentiel, citing La Vanguardia.

🇪🇸 Spain · Source: L’essentiel ·

🇿🇼 Latest from Zimbabwe

Map: ZimbabweZimbabwe’s real GDP may exceed $100 billionAnalysts estimate Zimbabwe’s real gross domestic product exceeds $100 billion, compared with about $66 billion according to official figures. They attribute the gap to the importance of informal and undervalued economic activity, according to experts quoted this week by the Financial Gazette.All Zimbabwe news →

Health in Southern Africa

Map: South AfricaSouth African activist Desmond D’Sa dies in accidentSouth African environmental activist Desmond D’Sa, 70, died in a car accident with two family members on the southern KwaZulu-Natal coast. A 2014 Goldman Prize winner, he secured the closure of a hazardous landfill in Chatsworth, according to TimesLIVE.All Health news →

The week in Africa

This week’s highlights

  1. Last Ebola patient leaves Ituri centre🇨🇩 DR Congo
  2. Moscow seeks to strengthen economic ties with Africa🇷🇺 Russia
  3. Dangote to supply half of Cameroon’s imported fuel🇨🇲 Cameroon
  4. Google expands AI search ads internationally🇺🇸 United States
  5. Twenty-six countries sign trade convention in Accra🇬🇭 Ghana
All of this week’s highlights →

Africa in your inbox

Be the first to get our letter in English: the essentials from every region of the continent, free.

← Back to the news