THE Enugu Chapter of the National Association of Seadogs, (NAS) aka Pyrates Confraternity, in commiserating with the families of the deceased in the recent fatal petrol tanker crash in Enugu, has called for strategies to avert further carnage at the Ugwu Onyeama section of the Enugu – Onitsha expressway.
In a statement on Monday, the President of the Enugu Chapter of the Association, Joe Mazeli pledged the support and partnership of NAS to the state governor, Peter Mbah who promised to do what is necessary to avert a repeat.
Mazeli called on the Minister for Works and Infrastructure, Dave Umahi to declare a state of emergency on the accident prone Ugwu Onyeama.
He noted that NAS is committed to finding ways to “mitigate these crashes and we cannot follow the same old reactive approaches and expect different results.”
The president, stated that there is a need for “the speedy rehabilitation and reconstruction of the second lane of the expressway from Akama Ngwo up to Abakpa Junction. This will ensure free flow of traffic in both directions.”
The Association also called on the Enugu State House of Assembly to urgently “draft a bill that will limit the movement of heavy duty trucks, especially those transporting inflammable substances in the state from 9pm to 6am.” He believes that fatalities will be highly reduced if such vehicles were to be involved in a crash within that time.
Mazeli further called on the military hierarchy, the Police and the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) to dismantle all barricades at checkpoints in Ugwu Onyeama to facilitate unhindered vehicular movement.
According to him, “the barricades not only prevent free flow of traffic, but also restrict rescue efforts in times of emergency.”
NAS appealed to the Federal and State Fire Service to establish a fire station in the area as the “nearest Fire Service station at 9th Mile is several kilometres from Ugwu Onyeama. A fire service facility will further guard the newly set up CNG plant in the area.”
Meanwhile, Mazeli cautioned haulage operators to ensure regular mechanical checks of their vehicles and to regularly retrain their drivers on safety, following reports that the crash was caused by brake failure.
He called on all stakeholders to join the governor on this bid to mitigate accidents at Ugwu Onyeama “because no one is immune to road crashes and in our silence, we will all share the blame through our collective tacit neglect.”
