On Friday, 19 February at 10:30 pm (almost one month after the previous accident I wrote to you about) another vehicle hit the tree in front of our house at 22 Overbury Street, Brackenhurst. A white Citroen C2 hatchback with KZN plates driven by two teenagers careened into another tree a few meters from where the previous vehicle hit last month on the 18th of January.
When I arrived on the scene a minute after the accident, the passenger was out of the vehicle and the driver was unconscious at the wheel. The passenger was trying to rouse the driver. Both teenagers were clearly under the influence of alcohol. The owner of the vehicle is believed to be the passenger. The driver was his friend who he had let drive his vehicle. The family of the two teenagers arrived on the scene shortly after the accident (I believe they must have been in the vicinity or possibly driving with the vehicle involved in the accident because nobody made any phone calls). Four tow trucks also arrived within a few minutes. Ekurhuleni Metro arrived about 30 minutes after the accident. There were some tense scenes as the family tried to cover up who was driving the vehicle and then tried to interfere with the investigating officer. Witnesses to the accident (Me and another neighbour) pointed out the driver to the police. The driver of the vehicle was arrested on the scene by the Ekurhuleni Metro Police and the SAPS. The 17 year old driver said he has no driver's licence. The family also tried to have the vehicle removed from the scene before the police arrived. They were chastised by the police officers for interfering with the scene of an accident. The family was distraught as they said that the 17 year old driver already has a suspended sentence for a previous incident.
The driver's name was given as Julio and the passenger as Dean. The two teenagers readily admitted that they had been drinking, but said that their car had burst a tire causing the accident. A thin long skid mark is to be observed and may bear out the truth that the car blew a tire. The passenger also admitted that he had pulled the hand brake of the vehicle before the incident (to make the car "drift"), which may in turn have caused the tire to blow. An investigation is underway by the Ekurhuleni Metro Police.
After the accident in January in which a Silver Subaru was written off, an Ekurhuleni Metro officer made contact with me, the owner of the house. He said that there is nothing the Ekurhuleni Metro can do about the road and there was no problem in his opinion. While we were talking in front of our house I pointed out several vehicles which were obviously exceeding the speed limit, but he said that they were not speeding in his opinion and there was nothing else they could do.
How long until someone dies on this road?
Still Frustrated
