At least 18 people dead after minibus taxi ‘explodes into fire’ in Zimbabwe

NewsWorldAfricaAt least 18 people dead after minibus taxi ‘explodes into fire’ in ZimbabweThe fire took place on a highway near the second biggest city of Bulawayo, police said in a separate statementAssociated Press Thursday 16 April 2026 19:14 BSTBookmarkCommentsGo to commentsBookmark popoverRemoved from bookmarksClose popover{"translations":{"comments":"Go to comments","share":"Share","copyLink":"Copy link","bookmark":"Bookmark","removeBookmark":"Remove bookmark"},"showComments":true,"showBookmark":true,"articleId":"b2959309","articleMeta":{"url":"https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/africa/zimbabwe-minibus-fire-deaths-bulawayo-b2959309.html","title":"At least 18 people dead after minibus taxi ‘explodes into fire’ in Zimbabwe"}}Minibus taxis are a popular, yet often perilous, mode of public transport in the southern African nation (JEKESAI NJIKIZANA/AFP via Getty Images)On The Ground newsletter: Get a weekly dispatch from our international correspondentsGet a weekly dispatch from our international correspondentsGet a weekly international news dispatchEmail*SIGN UPI would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our Privacy notice{"className":"sc-1ge0fwe-0","newsletterData":{"regSourceNewsletter":"IND_On_The_Ground_Newsletter","regTitle":"On The Ground","subscriptionGroup":"on_the_ground","subscriptionGroupId":"14806361-6435-4d19-b06e-05326605fb01","pathPrefix":["/news/world/europe","/news/world/middle-east","/news/world/australasia","/news/world/africa","/asia"],"associatedAuthors":["Bel Trew","Sam Kiley"],"title":"On The Ground newsletter: Get a weekly dispatch from our international correspondents","mobileTitle":"Get a weekly international news dispatch","lengthenedMobileTitle":"Get a weekly dispatch from our international correspondents","imageSrc":"https://static.independent.co.uk/static-assets/images/newsletters/onTheGround1_1.png","newsletterKey":"receiveOnTheGround","regSourceSection":"Africa","regSourceMethod":"NS...