News 13:00

BULLETIN 20 January 1 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# Six schools were affected by the Vanderbijlpark crash
# Spain starts three days of national mourning after Sunday’s deadly train crash
# And cricket: Ferreira is in doubt for the T20 World Cup after an injury during the SA20

# The Gauteng Department of Education has confirmed six schools were affected by yesterday’s fatal crash in Vanderbijlpark which claimed the lives of 12 learners, with one child still unidentified. Three injured learners remain in hospital. Spokesperson Steve Mabona says psycho-social support teams have been deployed to affected schools and families, and MEC Matome Chiloane is visiting the families today:

Meanwhile, nine learners were injured when the driver of a seven-seater learner transport vehicle lost control and it crashed into a tree on Sarnia Road in Pinetown, KwaZulu-Natal. The vehicle was transporting learners home from school. Emergency services attended the scene, stabilising the children before transporting them to hospitals for further care. Police are investigating the cause of the collision.

# The City of Johannesburg confirms recent sulphur-like odour complaints are likely linked to transboundary air pollution. Residents across Sandton, Randburg, Roodepoort, and Fourways reported a strong smell. Spokesperson Nthatisi Modingoane says the city ruled out a local source. He says weather conditions may have transported pollutants from Mpumalanga’s industrial areas, advising vulnerable residents to remain indoors and monitor symptoms:

Moving abroad:

# Spanish prime minister Pedro Sanchez has declared three days of national mourning from today following Sunday’s train accident in Andalusia that claimed at least 40 lives. He announced this during a visit to the disaster scene at Adamuz, 360-kilometres from Madrid. Sanchez cancelled his trip to the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, to visit the site. The death toll is among the 20 highest from a train crash in Europe in 80-years, according to Eurostat data, and the highest in Spain since 2013.

# Cricket: Allrounder Donovan Ferreira is in doubt for the T20 World Cup after apparently fracturing his shoulder while playing for Joburg Super Kings in a SA20 match against Pretoria Capitals on Saturday. He took over the captaincy after former Proteas captain Faf du Plessis injured a thumb that will keep him out of the rest of the competition. Ferreira’s SA20 is also over. The Proteas are already sweating over the fitness of Tony de Zorzi. The World Cup starts in India and Sri Lanka on 7 February.

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 16-rand-45-cents and the euro at 19-rand-28-cents. One British pound costs 22-rand-18-cents and Bitcoin trades at 90-thousand-889-dollars. Gold sells at four-thousand-733-dollars-86-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 63-dollars-45-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….