Durban - While millions of people celebrate the holidays, others are bracing for another traumatising festive season trying to save lives after traffic crashes.
From paramedics to firefighters, men and women in the emergency services face the annual road carnage.
“The biggest thing we take home is seeing a large amount of unnecessary death; high-impact, high-velocity collisions with vehicles often overloaded or with kiddies who are not adequately restrained,” said Kyle van Reenen, from Emer-G-Med, adding that he had noticed a trend of cars involved in crashes not having infant seats.
“Ensure you have adequate seating for all occupants of your vehicle, do not place small children on the laps of adults. If there are not adequate car seats, they should not be in vehicles,” he said.
Van Reenen urged motorists to ensure their vehicles were roadworthy and stressed that alcohol and driving do not mix.
“No matter whether you think you are smart and using back roads in your area or driving from Durban to Johannesburg, there is no difference. Don’t do it!” Van Reenen urged.
According to Gary Paul, Netcare 911’s head of coastal operations, any accident where people are hurt is bad enough, but the most painful to see are those involving children.
“Recently we attended a multi-vehicle accident where small children were critically injured while travelling in the back of a bakkie, which collided with a truck and light motor vehicle. We would like all drivers to consider the innocent lives that are at stake every time we get behind the steering wheel,” he said.
Paul also appealed to motorists not to drink and drive.
“The consequences of alcohol on our roads at this time of year are chilling. As emergency medical services, we urge everyone to obey the rules of the road, wear seatbelts, stop regularly to take a break, and make sure children are safely buckled up,” he said.
Gary’s twin, Shaun Paul, Netcare 911’s regional operations manager, KwaZulu-Natal, said operational readiness was key for emergency workers, as was extensive planning.
“Strategic partnerships and teamwork is critical for a successful ‘holiday season’. (All emergency medical services providers and auxiliary services in KZN) are a united team working towards a common goal. It is never individuals who save lives, it is a collaborative effort and we find a lot of job satisfaction in working together to save the life of a total stranger,” he said.
Shawn said the EMS profession was a calling.
“We are passionate about saving lives. Emergency medical services is a very fulfilling profession, and we receive many appreciation cards and emails of gratitude for the care provided to patients and their loved ones,” he said.
Netcare 911 has counsellors available to debrief the operational teams.
“This support is very helpful. Having a team that understands the pressures of our vocation is also a great comfort,” Shawn added.
Firefighters are also an important part of the team of first responders.
Sanelisiwe Dimba is a senior firefighter who has been in the job for five years.
“My love for helping people has made my experience as a firefighter fulfilling. The festive season is the toughest part of the year because of the increase in calls from house fires to road crashes. Because it was my dream to be a firefighter, I wake up to go to work with a smile. I face all the challenges head-on,” said Dimba.
One month into her job, she and the team were called to a house fire in the KwaNgcolosi area “and there was a dead person on the scene. That was a scary sight for me and I went home in tears".
“We have counselling at work but sometimes I feel better from just talking to my family and letting them comfort me,” said Dimba.
Her colleague, Thembela Hlongwane said his 13-year career had been a learning experience.
"When my career as a firefighter started I did not know much about it, especially that we have to deal with more than house fires: we even assist pregnant women delivering a baby,“ he said.
Hlongwane said one of the problems they faced in the busy holiday season was that the public did not cooperate.
“Most of the time crashes are caused by drinking and driving and when we arrive, we face the challenge of dealing with intoxicated people and some people do not know we deal with road accidents too. They try to prevent us from pulling out someone stuck in a vehicle or performing CPR. Sometimes they get violent with us,” he said.
They also had to explain to desperate people that they could not take people to hospitals when an ambulance did not arrive “because of the ambulance crisis”.
His most traumatic experience was at a crash in Chesterville when a victim’s remains were scattered on the road. He said he could not eat for a couple of days.
“Although there was counselling available, I opted for talking to my colleagues and talking during debriefing. I have learned to deal with my trauma by talking to colleagues because this is part of the job and it is bound to happen,” said Hlongwane.
He also said that the relationship between the fire department and the taxis was better than before.
“We used to face challenges of taxi drivers not allowing us to move through traffic when we have a call to attend, but now they help us in getting other drivers to make way for us on the road,” said Hlongwane.
Metro Police’s spokesman, Senior Superintendent Boyise Zungu said that in his career, a festive season crash that stood out involved a fully-loaded minibus that collided with a sedan car.
“Six passengers from the minibus were injured. One died on the scene. Two people from the car died on the scene,” he said.
Zungu said attending to such serious accidents was very traumatising: “Especially when it’s your first time. Counselling is definitely required,” a service available to staff.
He said more drivers were using devices while behind the wheel and that crashes increasingly involved trucks, largely because truck drivers were not resting enough.
A KZN paramedic who did not wish to be named, said she had seen horrific scenes during her 17-year career.
“Most crashed we deal with during the festive season are due to drinking and driving. Sometimes it is due to fatigue when driving long distances,” she said.
They also faced crime in the line of duty.
“Recently we received a call for a bullet injury. Upon arrival we were held at gunpoint and robbed of our cell phones and money, they even beat us up. After that incident, we requested a police vehicle to follow us when we go to any call, but it was impossible since they also have their cases to attend to,” said the medic.
Xolile Tatana, from Cousinz Towing and Recoveries in Mariannhill, said drivers must stay clear of the yellow line and slow down or move to the far left lane when they see the emergency lights.
“Sometimes they approach at high speed and there ends up being another accident on top of the accident we are dealing with. They shouldn’t overtake even when they see the cones placed around the scene. When travelling long distances, they should try to carry their identity documents so that we know who you are if we need to contact family,” said Tatana.
“When pulling out someone from their crashed vehicle, we have to deal with the shock of realising they are dead. It is difficult because we don’t have any counselling,” said Tatana.
Road safety advice from emergency services:
- Don’t drink and drive
- Don’t text and drive
- Be observant on the road
- Remember that speed kills
- Remember that fatigue kills
- Don’t drive an unroadworthy vehicle
- Child car seats are vital. Ensure children are secured with seat belts and placed in the back seating area and not the front seat.
- Children should not be allowed to stand while the vehicle is moving.
The Independent on Saturday