The Central Regional Fire Service PRO, DOIII Abdul Wasiw Hudu, has revealed that Central Regional Fire Service had information about the Shama accident very late.
14 persons died on the spot at Asemasa close to Beposo in the Shama District of the Western Region after a truck rammed into a Ford Passenger vehicle on Tuesday Afternoon.
According to reports, all passengers on board the Ford vehicle and the truck driver were burnt beyond recognition.
Speaking to host of Atinka FM’s AM Drive Kaakyire Ofori Ayim, The Central Regional Fire Service PRO, DOIII Abdul Wasiw Hudu stated that it was a taxi driver plying the route who drove to the fire station to inform the officers of the accident.
According to DOIII Abdul Wasiw Hudu, all 14 persons onboard the Ford Passenger vehicle had burnt beyond recognition.
“We did not get any distress call. It was a taxi driver who was plying that route who drove to the fire station and informed us of the accident. We quickly mobilized our men and got to the accident scene, but unfortunately the issue had escalated before we got there and the passengers in the Ford had burnt beyond recognition. Due to the intensity of the fire it caught nearby bushes and so it was a bush fire plus an accident,” The Central Regional Fire Service PRO, DOIII Abdul Wasiw Hudu told Kaakyire Ofori Ayim.
This is barely a week after six students of the University of Education Winneba (UEW) died in a fatal accident at Sunyani.
Meanwhile, the National Road Safety Authority (NRSA) has attributed the recent fatal multiple accidents to excessive speeding and wrongful overtaking.
The comment from the NRSA follows four separate road crashes that occurred in the Eastern, Oti, and Greater Accra regions leading to the death of 17 people with several cases of injuries among others.
In a statement, the NRSA said preliminary investigations indicated that excessive speeding, wrongful overtaking, inattentiveness, disabled vehicles, and fatigue are the critical contributory factors to the crashes recorded.
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The NRSA has also expressed its condolences to the families of the deceased persons and wishes the injured a speedy recovery.
The Authority has revealed that it has also commissioned an investigation into the crashes.
“Further, Road Safety Inspectors have been deployed at major transport terminals to ensure compliance to road safety directives on two drivers per long-distance route and the use of vehicle logbooks, among others.
“To complement these efforts, the Authority appeals to the Inspector General of Police (IGP) for an increased presence of the police on high-risk corridors to help enforce traffic regulations, including excessive speeds by drivers.
“The Authority has noted that, despite the frequent occurrence of the road traffic crashes, its resultant injuries and death have declined by 3.7% and 9.2% respectively in the month of January and February 2022 as compared to the same period in 2021.
“However, the last few days have seen a rise in crashes which may not necessarily mean a rise in crashes or crises situation. The Authority calls for calm and support from the public for the operationalization of its mandate and implementation of existing strategies to improve the road safety situation,” excerpts of the statement from the NRSA said.
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