Three steps to follow after an accident
JOBURG – You've had a car accident; you're scared, possibly hurt... what should you do next?
Being involved in a motor vehicle accident, or being witness to one, is a terrible experience.
What can be more disturbing is not knowing what to do when it happens.
Here are three emergency steps you should take in an emergency situation. City of Johannesburg Emergency Management Services spokesperson, Robert Mulaudzi answers the following questions:
Q: In the event of an accident, what is the first thing people should do?
A: If you are the driver, you should stop and do a quick assessment of the incident and call for help on 10177 or 112 from your cellphone; call centre agents will assist you in answering most of your questions.
Q: If you are a witness to an accident, who do you call or what do you do?
A: You should call for emergency services because your priority is to the lives of the people injured. If there is a need, other services can be activated later.
Q: What should people do if no emergency vehicle has arrived?
A: We only encourage people who are trained in first aid to assist if there is a need to assist, however, people who are not trained aren’t encouraged to assist because sometimes while the intention might be to help, they might make the injuries worse.
It is for this reason that we urge all the residents of the City of Johannesburg to visit the BeSafe centres where they can be trained on, aside from other programmes, basic first aid and basic firefighting training, free of charge.
This training helps our communities to deal with some emergencies before the professionals arrive on the scene.
Contact the Florida Park BeSafe Centre on 011 758 5050 for more information about the training.
Details: City of Johannesburg Emergency Management Services 011 222 8288.
