Another runaway truck crashes at Usakos

ANOTHER truck’s brakes failed on the long descent to Usakos on Wednesday, resulting in the vehicle crashing into an old railway fuel carriage.

According to eyewitnesses, the accident took place at around 21h30, just half a day before traffic picked up drastically as people made their way to the coast for the long weekend.The lorry missed the old locomotive monument – which had been hit by several runaway trucks in the past – and crossed three railway tracks before crashing into an empty fuel carriage, an eyewitness told The Namibian.Nobody was injured, the Police said.Town CEO Josef Jantze told The Namibian that the municipality is concerned about the frequent lorry accidents on the Swakopmund side of Usakos. ‘I can just say again that it is by the grace of God that no other vehicle was in the way of this truck. It would be a tragedy if a tourist bus, or a family car, passed through town and got hit by a truck with failed brakes coming down that hill,’ Jantze said.He said the municipality’s concerns were brought to the attention of the Roads Authority a year ago.Wolfgang Hartmann, Acting Divisional Engineer for Maintenance at the Roads Authority, told The Namibian that an ‘arrester system’ – a long sand or gravel pit along the road into which a truck can veer off to break its speed – is being considered.’It’s a matter of finding the right place, and then it could take about six months before completion,’ Hartmann said.Another runaway truck crashes at Usakos •ADAM HARTMANANOTHER truck’s brakes failed on the long descent to Usakos on Wednesday, resulting in the vehicle crashing into an old railway fuel carriage.According to eyewitnesses, the accident took place at around 21h30, just half a day before traffic picked up drastically as people made their way to the coast for the long weekend.The lorry missed the old locomotive monument – which had been hit by several runaway trucks in the past – and crossed three railway tracks before crashing into an empty fuel carriage, an eyewitness told The Namibian.Nobody was injured, the Police said.Town CEO Josef Jantze told The Namibian that the municipality is concerned about the frequent lorry accidents on the Swakopmund side of Usakos. ‘I can just say again that it is by the grace of God that no other vehicle was in the way of this truck. It would be a tragedy if a tourist bus, or a family car, passed through town and got hit by a truck with failed brakes coming down that hill,’ Jantze said.He said the municipality’s concerns were brought to the attention of the Roads Authority a year ago.Wolfgang Hartmann, Acting Divisional Engineer for Maintenance at the Roads Authority, told The Namibian that an ‘arrester system’ – a long sand or gravel pit along the road into which a truck can veer off to break its speed – is being considered.’It’s a matter of finding the right place, and then it could take about six months before completion,’ Hartmann said.