Pretoria - Drivers, particularly of heavy vehicles, are urged to check and confirm height restrictions before entering narrow passages and low bridges, the Ekurhuleni Metro Police Department (EMPD) said.
“The EMPD gives a stern warning to drivers, especially of heavy motor vehicles, to adhere to road signs stipulating height restrictions,” EMPD spokesperson Lieutenant Colonel Kelebogile Thepa said.
“This is truly disturbing that due diligence is not followed by such drivers and those found in contravention will be prosecuted.”
Thepa spoke to IOL after an articulated truck became stuck under the Elgin bridge in the Kempton Park area earlier this week.
Thepa said the EMPD would not be taking kindly to drivers ignoring height restrictions across Ekurhuleni.
At the time, EMPD said it would take an estimated two to three hours to remove the truck and clear the area. Motorists were then urged to use alternative routes.
Thepa said the driver of the truck, which was stuck under Elgin bridge, was issued with a written summon to appear in court.
In January, Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi confirmed that the Boksburg tanker explosion, after a truck was stuck under a bridge, had claimed five more lives.
This brought the death toll to 37 people who had died following the Boksburg tanker explosion that took place on Christmas Eve near the Tambo Memorial Hospital.
On Saturday, December 24, a truck carrying liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) got stuck under a bridge in Boksburg, resulting in a leak and blast that instantly killed 10 people. Since then, the number of victims and fatalities kept rising consistently.
Following the disaster, there were calls for traffic authorities and municipalities to re-examine local road signage to make sure that dangers, such as low bridges, are properly marked.
IOL