EDITOR – I was reading your article on the internet regarding the accident on First Avenue and Elm Street junction.
I saw the accident on the way home and it has been bothering me ever since.
This is not surprising, the police vehicles in Edenvale, in fact all of Johannesburg, drive too fast; they have no regard for the rules of the road, do not stop at traffic lights or stop streets, overtake on solid white lines and so on.
Clearly this police vehicle did not stop at the stop street, resulting in this accident.
Responding to an emergency does not give police vehicles the right to ignore the rules of the road and in so doing endanger the lives of other road users.
The incident reported also involved a civilian vehicle which was damaged in this same incident.
What is the condition of the civilian whose car was also damaged?
My concerns relate to the way the police vehicles drive around our neighbourhoods; they are breaking the law, they are not trained to drive at the speeds they are driving at and they are putting our lives at risk.
I would like to know what happened to the driver of the civilian vehicle that was involved in this accident, I trust they were not blamed in any way or, God forbid arrested and put in jail because a policeman was injured.
PIET POTGIETER,
EDENVALE.
EDITOR’S COMMENT – Acting spokesperson for the Edenvale SAPS, Lieutenant Colonel Robbie Roberts, commented as follows:
SAPS officers regularly attend driver training courses to hone their skills when driving at high speeds.
When it is an emergency situation officers will use their lights and sirens to warn other vehicles.
In this case the call was for a robbery in progress and three vehicles responded.
When the accident occurred, one of the other vehicles continued the chase in the event that a life could be saved. The other vehicle stopped to assist those involved in the accident.
This was an accident – there was no one to blame. Yes, statements were taken just like at any other accident scene, but there is no blaming and pointing fingers.
The drivers of the other vehicle, although offered, refused medical assistance from paramedics on the scene.
