Twelve people were burnt to death in a horror smash between Bethlehem and Fouriesburg early on Saturday morning, Free State's department of police, roads and transport said.

"A BMW collided with two mini buses and 11 people in the minibus burned beyond recognition and the driver of the BMW also died," said spokesperson Hillary Mophethe on the department's Facebook page.

She said law enforcement agencies were at the scene and more information would be provided when a full report is released.

The department repeatedly calls for vigilance and extra caution on the roads in the province. The accident occurred on one of the main routes to Lesotho. </s> The crash happened on the R26 between Fauriesburg and Bethlehem in the early hours of Saturday morning.

Thirteen people have been killed and eight others injured in a collision between a car and two minibuses in the Free State.

The crash happened on the R26 between Fouriesburg and Bethlehem in the early hours of Saturday morning.

One vehicle lost control and hit a minibus which lost control and then hit another minibus in a head-on collision which instantly caught fire.

Spokesperson for the police, Roads and Transport in the Free State Hilary Mophete said: “11 people died in the minibus and the BMW driver also died on the scene and one person from the other minibus and eight people were injured and taken to hospital. </s> Thirteen people were killed and six others injured in a horror collision between two minibuses and a BMW in the Free State in the early hours of Saturday.

Spokesperson for the Free State roads and transport department Hilary Mophete said the crash had occurred at around 3am on the R26 between Fouriesburg and Bethlehem.

She said it was alleged that the driver of the BMW had lost control of the vehicle and struck one of the minibuses before colliding head-on with the other minibus which had caught fire.

“Eleven people from the second minibus and one from first minibus died. The driver of the minibus also died. Six people were injured,” Mophete said.

The injured were ferried to hospital.

She said the two minibuses were apparently en route to Durban from Lesotho to buy business stock. </s> A driver and 19 school children were killed in South Africa when the minibus they were travelling in collided with a truck and exploded in a ball of fire in Mpumalanga province, emergency services said on Friday.

The vehicle was ferrying children from school when it collided with the truck between the towns of Verena and Bronkhorstpruit, northeast of the capital Pretoria, Russel Meiring, ER24 spokesman said.

Several children were injured, he said.

The dead children lay trapped inside the burnt out shell of the vehicle that stood on its side, he said.

It was not clear what caused the collision, police said.

"The (minibus) was transporting learners from school and it collided with the truck and caught fire," Mpumalanga police spokesman Gerald Sedibe said. He said the minibus driver was killed, while the truck driver survived.

Even though it is Africa's most industrialised economy with a modern road network, South Africa has a dire road safety record. Road deaths rose to 235 during this year's Easter weekend compared with 156 fatalities last year, transport officials said earlier on Friday. </s> Nineteen schoolchildren have been killed after their minibus collided head-on with a truck in South Africa.

The minibus exploded into a fireball and ended up lying on its side.

The bus driver also died while the driver of the truck survived.

A number of children, who were found trapped inside the vehicle by paramedics after the flames were put out, were declared dead at the scene.

Several other pupils were hurt - some were reportedly dragged from the wreckage by passers-by.

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Their injuries ranged from minor to critical.

Image: The aftermath of the deadly crash. Pic: ER24EMS

The tragedy happened on a road between the towns of Bronkhorstspruit and Verena, 45 miles from the capital Pretoria, in Mpumalanga province.

Mpumalanga police spokesman Gerald Sedibe said: "The (minibus) was transporting learners from school and it collided with the truck and caught fire."

Spokesman for the ER24 emergency medical service, Russel Meiring, said: "It is confirmed 20 children have been killed."

He added: "Paramedics arrived on the scene to find the fire services already in attendance.

"The fire services had already extinguished the burning vehicle, which was found lying on its side."

The cause of the crash is not yet known.

South Africa has a poor road safety record.

Road deaths rose to 235 during this year's Easter weekend compared with 156 fatalities last year. </s> JOHANNESBURG (AP) — Emergency responders say at least 20 children have been killed when their minibus collided with a truck northeast of South Africa’s capital.

Images posted by the ER24 medical service on Twitter show the minibus smoking and twisted on its side next to the truck.

ER24 says responders found about 13 children trapped inside the vehicle after its flames were put out. The other children were found outside the minibus.

The emergency service says the cause of the crash is not yet known. It occurred between the communities of Verena and Bronkhorstpruit. </s> At least 13 people were dead in South Africa after a collision involving three vehicles on Saturday, news website eNCA reported.

Transport authority spokesperson Hilary Mophete told eCNA that a driver allegedly drove off the road, sideswiping a minibus and then colliding head on with a second bus.

The second bus burst into flames, killing 11 persons; the driver of the car and one passenger in the first minibus also died and six people were injured while three were severely injured.

The accident happened in Free State, a province in the country’s centre. </s> At least 18 schoolchildren were killed when a minibus and a truck collided north of the South African capital of Pretoria on Friday, emergency services authorities said.

The driver of the minibus was also killed, emergency services spokesman Russel Meiring told CNN.

Medical personnel treated several children at the scene.

The minibus burst into flames after the collision. The cause of the accident is still under investigation.

Check back for updates on this developing story. </s> Gunmen have shot dead eleven people in a minibus as they travelled home from a funeral.

All the victims were part of a taxi drivers’ association, and had been paying tribute to a colleague.

Four others were critically injured in the ambush, which happened between the towns of Colenso and Weenen in KwaZulu-Natal province, South Africa.

Police are investigating the motive for the attack.

Tensions between groups of taxi drivers vying for the same routes sometimes spill into deadly violence in South Africa.

South African media reported the deaths of 10 people in violence related to rivalries among minibus taxi drivers in Cape Town over one weekend in May.

Police Brig. Jay Naicker said the victims were from Gauteng province and had been travelling back to Johannesburg.

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A BMW collides with two oncoming minibuses between Fouriesburg and Bethlehem in Free State, South Africa, killing thirteen and injuring eight.