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South African Broadcasting Corporation Copyright ©
2000 - 2005 SABC |
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this
Tuesday May 13, 2003, SABC 3 at 9h30 pm -
"The
May Day Bus Disaster"
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This Tuesday, Special
Assignment asks the question: could the loss of 51 lives
in the May Day bus disaster have been averted?
Almost 20 years ago the
Westdene bus disaster shocked South Africa when 42 chool
children drowned after their school bus plunged into a
dam. Last week 51 people died when a bus drove into the
Saulspoort Dam near Bethelehem. These are not isolated
cases. Over the past twenty years one bus disaster after
the other has hit the headlines.
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In the Saulspoort
Dam disaster -- as in Westdene - it was not the
crash that killed so many people. It seems that
passengers couldn't escape from the bus once it sank and
drowned. Emergency exit failure in bus accidents can
lead to the trapping of passengers, with a massive loss
of life.
This week Special
Assignment investigates the emergency features on buses
and comes up with a shocking find. So-called emergency
"pop out" windows exist in name only. There is
no legislation that outlines how these windows should be
tested when the vehicles go for roadworthy tests. There
is no legislation that outlines the specifications of
how these windows should be manufactured or fitted. Most
of the so-called emergency exit windows on buses are
made and fitted like any other on the vehicle. There is
only one difference: they have an "emergency
exit" sticker on them. A sticker that can be bought
across the counter at most motor spare shops.
As South africa mourns
the loss of so many, we meet the families of the
victims. We find out how a small community is coming to
terms with the loss of their loved ones; how the loss of
51 breadwinners is affecting the local economy.
This breaking news report
is directed by Mpho Moagi, K hadija Magardie and
Anneliese Burgess.
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page by Steven
Lang
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