Stray cattle are a road hazard

ISAAC PINIELO
Correspondent | Tuesday October 26, 2010 00:00

According to Superintendent Loeto Ramabokwa of Letlhakane, the man, who was headed to Letlhakane got a lift in a Toyota Corolla driven by a 29-year-old man from Letlhakane.

He said as the vehicle got to the Setoto cattlepost at around 8pm. It hit the cow that broke through the front windscreen and out through the back.

He said the man was rushed to hospital with serious injuries and was certified dead on arrival.

The driver of the vehicle was only treated for minor injuries on the hands and released the same day.

Ramabokwa could not give the names of the deceased man as the next of kin is yet to be notified.

He has appealed to drivers to exercise extreme caution when driving along the Sir Seretse Khama highway, noting that there are a lot of unattended cattle along the Francistown-Orapa road.

'This is a major concern to us as these cattle continue to cause accidents along this route,' said Superintendent Ramabokwa.

He said the problem arises from the veld fires that drive cattle to the road in search of greener pastures. He said the other problem is that cattle owners do not close livestock control gates which would prevent cattle from straying onto the road.

'Drivers must drive with caution along this road, they must be aware that they can come across cattle at any moment which may cause accidents. Farmers must also close the gates along the road always,' he reiterated.