Horror truck crash raises compliance questions

Last week’s horrific truck collision which led to the deaths of four police officers and the driver of one of the vehicles has raised questions about compliance by dangerous goods transporters. According to a statement released by the Government Communication and Information System (GCIS), a grocery truck collided with a truck carrying blasting cartridges on the N1 near Mokopane in Limpopo around midnight on Tuesday. Soon after the police arrived on the scene of the collision, the cartridges went off. The movement of dangerous goods is highly regulated, and while details of the accident were sketchy at time of writing, investigations will reveal whether correct procedures were followed. At that time of night, driver fatigue could have been an issue, said dangerous goods consultant Eddie Crane. “Legislation stipulates that a driver is allowed to drive for a maximum of five hours at a stretch after which he needs to get out of the vehicle and rest for 15 minutes. “The question to establish is whether the vehicle was more than five hours from the point at which the cargo was loaded or less than five hours from the driver’s last stop of a minimum of 15 minutes. “Over and above that every dangerous goods vehicle would need to have full placarding on all three sides , an orange warning diamond in the front of the vehicle, and the dangerous goods operator would need a Dangerous Goods Category D and G , or Category D Operator Card as well as special transport permit from the South African Police Service’s explosives division,” said Crane. “The driver would also need to be suitably qualified – including being in possession of a PR DP D driving permit.” At this stage there are more questions than answers regarding the collision but government has said that the SAPS will thoroughly investigate the accident.