State found negligent in fatal tree collision
AMOSSEL Bay woman who lost her husband when his vehicle collided with a fallen tree near Joubertina in 2006 says she is relieved that the court has found that the Departments of Public Works and Roads and Transport were negligent and could have prevented the accident.
Loretta Botha’s husband, Louis, was killed on August 2 2006 when his Toyota Landcruiser bakkie collided with a tree that had fallen into the road along which he was travelling from Kareedouw to Joubertina.
Part of the tree had been cut away by road workers but a large section had been left in the road and was not visible due to dark and severe storm conditions.
On Thursday, the Port Elizabeth High Court found that the departments and their employees had failed to maintain the road by re- moving the trees that caused a potential danger to motorists. The departments had also failed to close the road due to severe storm conditions or place any warning sign along the road.
“I am happy with the decision because I believe that he could still be alive today if they just did what they were supposed to do. They were negligent by not removing the trees and not doing anything to warn my husband,” she said.
Loretta, 47, said their son, Bart, 16, was only nine when his father died.
“We are struggling without him. He supported us and now I rely on my family so the money will help us a lot. My husband was a very good man and I miss him every day. I miss him more now that Bart is older because he needs his father. They say it gets easier but it does not,” she said.
In his judgment, Judge Phakamisa Tshiki said: “In my view, on the facts of this case it is clear that the defendant’s employees failed to prevent harm to the plaintiff when they should have done so. Their omission was not only negligent but also wrongful and was the factual cause of the plaintiff’s loss.”
He said the departments were liable to pay Loretta 100% of her proven damages, together with the costs of the suit and the costs of all expert witnesses who provided evidence.
“The manner in which the defendant’s employees approached the whole scenario on the date in question shows clearly that they omitted to take the appropriate action at the appropriate time in circumstances where the legal convictions of the community required them to do so.”
Barry Grimbeek, a director at Van Zyl Le Roux Incorporated in Pretoria who represented Loretta in the matter, said they were pleased with the decision.
“Summons was first issued in 2008 so we have been fighting for a long time. We will now start with quantifying the claim,” he said.
Grimbeek said Louis Botha was employed in the construction industry, building dams for farms in the rural areas of the Eastern Cape at the time of his death.
“He travelled often and on this stretch of road there were fallen trees that employees were working on. The tree he crashed into had actually been cut but had just been left in the middle of the road. So they had started working on it but they had just left it there.
“When he drove down that road it was dark and raining so he could not see the tree. Also, they had failed to close the road or put up any warning signs for motorists,” he said.
Grimbeek said when Louis crashed into the tree he had been decapitated by one of its branches.
Advocate Gideon Scheepers argued the matter on their behalf.