Durban - It appears that a truck which ploughed into traffic at a notorious Field’s Hill intersection on Wednesday morning leaving 13 people injured should never have been on the road in the first place.
A notice to discontinue operation - which The Mercury has had sight of - has been issued to the vehicle.
Under defects, the following were listed:
* Number plate
* Oil leaks
* Wind screen
* Fuel tank cap
* Rear right inner tyre
* Front left indicator lens
KwaZulu-Natal Road Traffic Inspectorate spokeswoman Zinhle Mngomezulu on Wednesday confirmed to The Mercury that as per the notice, the vehicle mentioned was not supposed to be in use.
According to Mngomezulu: “The vehicle is suspended and it’s not allowed to operate on the road.”
Rescue Care’s Garrith Jamieson was at the scene of the accident on Wednesday.
“We were called here just after 9am,” he said. “We found that a truck had come through the intersection colliding with another truck, a taxi and a bakkie.”
The truck driver was trapped in the wreckage and had to be freed using the jaws of life, Jamieson said.
The injuries of those who were hurt ranged from minor to moderate. “Fortunately there were no fatalities,” he added.
Traffic in the area was gridlocked for several hours on Wednesday morning, while the SAPS collision unit and other emergency services worked to investigate and clear the scene.
In September 2013, 24 people were killed when another truck crashed into several vehicles, including four minibus taxis, at the same intersection.
Swazi national Sanele May, who was behind the wheel at the time, pleaded guilty to various charges - including 24 counts of culpable homicide - and was sentenced to an effective eight years and 10 months behind bars.
Gregory Govender and his company, Sagekal Logistics, for whom May was working at the time of the accident, are currently facing charges of contravening sections of the National Road Traffic Act and the Immigration Act.
Court proceedings are ongoing.
Just three days ago, on Sunday, a wreath-laying ceremony was held at the crash site to commemorate World Remembrance Day for Traffic Victims.
A national road safety summit was held in Durban this week.
After the 2013 accident, vehicles heavier than 16 tons were banned from using Field’s Hill between 6am and 8am and between 4pm and 6.30pm.
Community activist Desmond D’Sa, who chiefly advocates for the rights of communities in the south of Durban, said on Wednesday that this was clearly not enough and that drastic action was needed.
He felt there was “no enforcement on the road” and said trucks were “a law unto themselves”.
“We have been pushing for alternatives to trucking, such as using rail,” he said.
“We need trucks removed from our roads.”
D’Sa said the community would embark on a campaign against trucks but that they needed the support of the masses.
“There needs to be outrage,” D’Sa said. “If people sit back and allow this, a few of us are not going to change anything”.
The company identified in documentation as the truck operator - the name of which is known to The Mercury - was contacted for comment yesterday.
The general manager initially said the driver of the truck was not in a stable condition and he had not had a chance to speak to him.
He said he was still gathering information and took down the registration number of the truck, as per the notice to discontinue operation.
He later said they did not have any vehicles with that registration number and that he could not provide any more information.
Police spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Thulani Zwane said an accident report has been opened.
The Mercury