"You Can't Heal From This": Clips of Vaal Children Resurface Before Tragic Scholar Transport Crash

• Videos of schoolchildren enjoying a normal commute resurfaced just days before news of a devastating accident
• The resurfaced clips reopened conversations around scholar transport safety, road conditions, and the risks many children face daily while travelling to school
• The timing of the video made the loss feel closer and more personal, especially for families who rely on similar transport routines

What started as a happy snapshot of ordinary school life became a painful reminder of how quickly everything can change on South African roads.

TikTok user @disebo94 posted a video on 21 January 2026 showing clips of schoolchildren from the Vaal region days before a tragic road accident. The footage showed the children riding together in the same scholar transport vehicle, smiling, laughing, and vibing to music. Other clips showed them dancing, wearing their school uniforms. Shortly after the video resurfaced, tragedy struck when a scholar transport vehicle crashed into a truck on the R553 near Vanderbijlpark, south of Johannesburg, on Monday, 19 January 2026. The Gauteng Department of Education later confirmed that 14 pupils lost their lives, while several others were injured.

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Dashcam footage from the truck involved showed it travelling steadily as vehicles passed safely in the opposite lane. Moments later, the scholar transport suddenly entered the truck’s path. The driver attempted to avoid impact by veering right, while the truck moved slightly left. Despite these efforts, the collision occurred head-on. The crash raised renewed concern around scholar transport safety, vehicle maintenance, and road conditions affecting school routes.

Vaal scholar transport tragedy

These are the names of the children:

Buhle Radebe – Grade 11, Hoërskool Vanderbijlpark

Bokamoso Mokhobo – Grade 8, Hoërskool Vanderbijlpark

Sibongile Madonsela – Grade 10, Hoërskool Vanderbijlpark

Leano Moiloa – Grade 8, Vaal High School

Lesego Sefatsa – Grade 2, Oakwood Primary School

Letlotlo Katlego Makwe – Grade 2, Vaal Triangle Primary School

Ofentse Jayden Vinger – Grade 1, Oliver Lodge Primary School

Lindokuhle Mabaso – Grade 5, Noordhoek Primary School

Pheello Motaung – Grade 11, El-Shaddai Christian School

Puleng Maphalla – Grade 11, El-Shaddai Christian School

Naledi Motsapi – Grade 10, El-Shaddai Christian School

Bohlale Lekekela – Grade 1, El-Shaddai Christian School

The video posted by TikTok user @disebo94 spread rapidly because it placed faces and personalities to the tragedy. Seeing the children happy just days before the accident made the loss feel closer and heavier. To date, South Africans are mourning the deaths of the little souls lost.

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The response reflected collective grief and reflection. People expressed sorrow, concern for families, and renewed calls for safer scholar transport systems, with the video serving as a painful reminder of how quickly ordinary days can change.

Here’s what Mzansi said

IrvNani said:

“As a parent, you can never heal from this”

Pamela said:

“Condolences to all the parents who're facing this mountain. God will carry you. 🙏”

Khabalidaka Mabutho said:

“I’m so sorry about your loss. May God be with you through the preparations. It will be well, I know it’s hard, but it will pass. May their souls rest in peace.”

Zee said:

“Yhoo. 😭😭😭 Life is cruel.”

Zanelz said:

“Xolo is not enough. I don’t know what to say”

Jabu said:

“I ask the mighty Lord to give parents all the strength. I don’t know how they will recover from this.”

Check out the TikTok video below:

3 Other Briefly News stories related to the Vaal accident

• An eyewitness publicly reported that reckless overtaking led to the collision between the truck and the minibus taxi.
• The family of two boys who were killed in the Vaal accident on the R553 in Vanderbijlpark says their trust in the scholar transport system was broken.
• South African broadcaster Sol Phenduka recently addressed the tragic accident that took the lives of 14 school children.

Source: Briefly News