Paramedics tired of carnage
IT IS AN OFFENCE to flout the rules of the road and those caught violating the government’s safety proposals must be dealt with accordingly and the transgressors charged criminally and prosecuted.
Those in the medical services, who help treat the injured at accident scenes, have declared enough is enough.
Almost every day, they are called out to accident scenes – most of which can be avoided if drivers obey the traffic rules.
Unless the errant motorists are reprimanded, the high death toll, say paramedics, will continue to rise.
Vicky Januk, of Accimed, said: “On paper the rules are a fantastic idea but law enforcement must implement the rules by having a stronger and stricter presence on our roads.”
He said one of the ways forward is by charging motorists criminally for their actions.
“The attitudes of those drivers, who knowingly disobey the road rules, need to change and quickly. They need to realise that their actions will have repercussions. Many believe they are above the law.
“For example, during a routine roadblock in Phoenix at least 40 drivers are charged with drinking and driving but they get off only with a fine.”
Januk added drivers knew that if they are caught, the punishment is not harsh, so they continue to do as they please by endangering the lives of others.
“We need to and we must take a zero tolerance approach. That is the only way we will be able to reduce the carnage on our roads.”
Russel Meiring, of ER24, added: “I remember a case where a man killed a family of four in an accident and was found not guilty. Lives were lost and just like how we treat cases of murder, fraud, rape and other crimes, disobeying the rules should also fall into that category.”
Meiring said people needed to understand that there are consequences to their actions. “Motorists have the notion that they can do as they please because they will not get caught and that mindset needs to change. The success of these rules lies with how forceful law enforcement will be.”
Robert Mckenzie, of KZN Emergency Medical Services, said motorists must change their thinking.
“Prosecuting offenders will change the way motorists think about the rules of the road. There are so many incidents taking place that we have stopped calling them accidents but crashes.”
Mckenzie said in 75 to 80% of cases, crashes are caused through lawlessness.
“When we arrive at an accident scene, you stand back and can visibly see what the cause of accidents are. Alcohol bottles are found in vehicles and then there are cases where simple rules are not being adhered to. It’s sad because these things can be avoided.”
He suggested communities work with non-government organisations to educate motorists.