Did selfish Durban motorists cost a man his life?
Jane is horrified by the behaviour of selfish motorists who clogged up the emergency lane after yesterday's horrific N2 crash. Listen to her interview with a paramedic who battled to get to the scene here.
I am so shocked and saddened that Durban motorists didn't move out of the emergency lane (reserved for emergency vehicles only!) to allow response crews racing to the scene of yesterday afternoon's truck crash on the N2 to get past.
I was stuck in the traffic chaos on the N2 after the crash for more than two hours, but at the time little did I realise how paramedics like Kyle van Reenen of Crisis Medical were battling just to get to the injured.
One has to wonder if a life could've been saved had certain motorists not been so disgustingly selfish.
Here is an excpert from an email that Kyle sent me:
Yesterday at around 15h30 I received a call for the accident on the N2 between Umhlanga and Kwamashu Highway.
I was trying to get to scene fighting through traffic, lights and sirens on...attempting to go down the emergency lane… (important to know that this accident was horrific and the driver of one of the trucks was still entrapped in his vehicle; when I arrived he was in cardiac arrest and we needed to do CPR… unfortunately he died)
While trying to get to scene I was cut off by a member of public driving a white bakkie, forcing his way into the emergency lane. When I asked him what he was doing and if his vehicle was an emergency vehicle thus giving him the rights to drive in the lane he said ‘yes’ and then swore at me telling me where to get off…
At a later stage we called for fire department to assist us. Drivers refused to let the fire truck through, so much so that I had to stop treating patients on scene and walk up the road and physically tell them to move out the way so they could get through.
Time and time again we see a total disregard for emergency vehicles, with the public not moving out the way, swearing at us, not letting us through. It’s an on-going battle that we fight every day just to be ‘allowed’ by society to get to a scene and help save a life.
Listen to my interview with Kyle below.
Did you witness yesterday's traffic jam and motorists not moving aside for emergency vehicles? We'd love to hear from you. Leave your comment below.
(Photo: Crisis Medical)