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Trucks
KZN, Gauteng record highest number of accidents at start of festive season
KZN, Gauteng record highest number of accidents at start of festive season
The festive season has started on a bleak note, with the preliminary road statistics showing that in the first six days of this month, 162 fatal crashes and 193 deaths were recorded in the country.
“To date, Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal have the highest number of accidents and fatalities, with a concentration of incidents in the metros. While current figures represent a decrease compared to the same period last year, these figures are still too high,” Transport Minister Barbara Creecy said on Monday.
Addressing media during the Cross-Alive Road Safety campaign at the Lebombo Border Post, the Minister said the most recent data was collected at the end of Friday, 6 December, and preliminary analysis of the figures indicated a high number of buses and trucks involved in accidents, with most of the accidents occurring after dark.
“To rectify this situation, urgent meetings will be convened this week with bus and truck operators, as well as traffic management authorities in the provinces and metros concerned.
“Road traffic operations in the first five days of December stopped nearly 200 000 vehicles and made 512 arrests. The top five offences include speeding; driving without a seat belt; driving an unlicensed vehicle; driving without a driving licence and driving a vehicle with worn tyres,” Creecy said.
Mpumalanga accounted for the highest number of impounded vehicle,s with 267 vehicles being taken off the road.
“Government is working hard to increase traffic patrolling and law enforcement operations. However, government alone cannot change this reality. We can only save lives if road users change their behaviour, because it is the behaviour of people that leads to most of the deaths on our roads,” the Minister said.
She reiterated government’s message on road safety.
“Before any journey, check your vehicle and make sure it is roadworthy. Make sure your public driving permit is in order if you need one, and carry a valid driver's licence.
“If you are a pedestrian this festive season, make smart choices. Only cross the road at a marked intersection or pedestrian crossing. Avoid jaywalking and wear bright clothing at night,” Creecy said.
She reminded those who will be getting behind the wheel on a long journey to take a break every two hours or every 200 kilometres.
“Remember, buckle up and stay within the speed limit. Do not overtake on a barrier line. Travel during the day - it is safer. If you are planning to party, please do not drink and drive. Please do not drink and walk. Stay over or appoint a designated driver who will not drink, or use public transport,” Creecy said.
Lebombo Border
The Minister visited the Lebombo Border post to receive first-hand information on the work that has been done to decongest trucks waiting to cross into Mozambique.
The Minister’s visit was necessitated by reports received on Saturday morning on the closure of the border, which had resulted in trucks queuing on the South African side.
“The queue reached distances of more than 20 kilometres, and this brought other challenges. This means that the Mozambiquan authorities opened the border to allow returning empty trucks and for passenger vehicles to leave that country. Since [Sunday], passenger vehicles have also been allowed to cross the border into Mozambique
“To address this challenge, my department is working with the Cross-Border Road Transport Agency and other law enforcement agencies to develop a plan to address this dire situation. Our country’s border authorities are in touch with their Mozambican counterparts, who will advise when it is safe for freight vehicles to cross the border,” the Minister said.
The Cross-Border Road Transport Agency is also in touch with the trucking industry to update them on the current situation.
“This situation has happened on a number of occasions in recent times. We plead for patience from the truck drivers, who have to stomach a very frustrating situation and spend long hours on the road,” the Minister said. - SAnews.gov.za
nosihle
Tue, 12/10/2024 - 11:06
70 views
Contractor appointed to repair equipment and provide clean linen at Bara
Contractor appointed to repair equipment and provide clean linen at Bara
The Gauteng Department of Health has appointed a service provider to repair the laundry equipment at the Chris Hani Baragwanath Academic Hospital in Soweto, Johannesburg.
This is after nurses raised their concern about infection control and cleanliness, as pictures of dirty linen surfaced on social media recently.
“The Gauteng Department of Health would like to reassure the public that several measures continue to be implemented to ensure the provision of clean linen to patients at Chris Hani Baragwanath Academic Hospital,” a statement issued by the department said.
The department said the facility’s laundry has ageing infrastructure, which requires an overhaul. Three tunnel washers are currently out of service, with only five driers operational in tunnel washer number two.
One out of the four ironers have been successfully repaired, while the original equipment manufacturer is in the process of repairing two other ironers.
“In the interim, hospital linens are being laundered at Dunswart Provincial Laundry on a daily basis to ensure a consistent supply of clean linen to patients,” the department said.
Meanwhile, 106 staff members have been deployed in the laundry section to boost capacity during the day and night shifts.
“Additionally, external two laundry service providers have also been appointed to further support these efforts. Already, two five-ton trucks have delivered clean linen over the weekend,” the department said.
The in-house laundry at the hospital is not only responsible for providing the linen for its 2 888 beds, but also services facilities including Carletonville and Bheki Mlangeni Hospitals, 33 community health centres in Soweto, emergency medical services, and the forensic pathology service.
“However, the department has put a solid plan in place to ensure that soiled linen can be replaced quickly at a much faster turnaround time by the 13th of December 2024.
“The department assures the public all is being done to restore laundry to better functionality as speedily as possible, and the health and comfort of our patients remain our key priority,” the department said. – SAnews.gov.za
Gabisile
Tue, 12/10/2024 - 10:29
29 views
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Businessman Hamilton Ndlovu found in contempt of Special Tribunal forfeiture order
Businessman Hamilton Ndlovu found in contempt of Special Tribunal forfeiture order
Controversial businessman Hamilton Ndlovu has been ordered by the Special Tribunal to 30 days imprisonment with the order suspended for 30 days.
Ndlovu scored personal protective equipment (PPE) tenders worth at least R170 million during the COVID-19 pandemic.
His legal troubles began when the Special Investigating Unit launched an investigation into allegations of corruption and the circumstances in which eight companies, directly and indirectly linked to Ndlovu, obtained contracts worth a total of R172 million for the procurement of PPE from the National Health Laboratory Service (NHLS).
The businessman was eventually hauled to the Special Tribunal by the corruption busting unit and ordered by the tribunal to pay back some R158 million in monies gained from the tenders.
Now, SIU spokesperson, Kaizer Kganyago says Ndlovu was found to have been in contempt of a forfeiture order handed down by the Tribunal two years ago.
“The order comes after the Tribunal found Ndlovu in contempt of the Tribunal’s forfeiture order issued on 7 June 2022, following the review proceedings related to the unlawful procurement of personal protective equipment initiated by the National Health Laboratory Service and the Special Investigating Unit.
“The imprisonment is suspended for 30 days to allow Ndlovu to comply with the Tribunal orders. Furthermore, a fine of R500 000 has also been imposed on Ndlovu, wholly suspended for one year on the condition that he is not found guilty again of contempt of the Special Tribunal orders during the period of suspension,” Kganyago said.
The items Ndlovu was ordered to surrender include:
- Scania trucks
- Mercedes Benz G63 AMG
- 2020 Cartier gentlemen’s wristwatch with black leather bracelet
- 2020 Rolex Oyster perpetual white Roman numerals gentleman’s wristwatch with gold and silver bracelet Model 126233
The spokesperson said Ndlovu had “initially…cooperated but his failure to fulfil his obligations demonstrated wilful non-compliance and deception”.
“Furthermore, Ndlovu’s entities Akanni Trading and Projects (Pty) Ltd and Zaisan Kaihatsu (Pty) Ltd applied to overturn the forfeiture order, and the application was dismissed with costs due to lack of valid defence and failure to prove that their defaults were not wilful.
“This ruling follows a series of civil litigation initiated by the SIU and the NHLS to recover assets acquired from the unlawful procurement of PPE during the COVID-19 pandemic,” he said. – SAnews.gov.za
NeoB
Thu, 11/14/2024 - 15:09
180 views
Chaos as Joburg Water Tries to Remove Illegal Connections
Residents of Phumla Mqashi informal settlement chase away technicians
City of Johannesburg to implement water restrictions
City of Johannesburg to implement water restrictions
The City of Johannesburg is set to implement the throttling of water supply between 9pm and 4 am.
Set to come into effect on Thursday, the move aims to enable reservoir levels to recover overnight.
The announcement was made by Water and Sanitation Minister, Pemmy Majodina, during a media briefing held in Johannesburg on Monday. This followed an urgent meeting held on Sunday to address the challenges of water in the City of Johannesburg.
Majodina reported that the Sunday meeting reached a unanimous agreement on the causes of the water supply interruptions and what needs to be done to restore a stable water supply to residents of Johannesburg.
The Minister noted that the 2023 No Drop report found that the average consumption of water in Gauteng to be 279 litres per person per day.
“This is 60% above the world average of 173 litres per person per day, which is an anomaly given that South Africa is a water-scarce country with limited sustainable water resources and amongst the top 30 driest countries globally.”
The 2023 No Drop report also found that water losses in Johannesburg were sitting at 35%, compared to the international norm of 15%.
The No Drop programme focuses on water conservation and demand management, aimed at ensuring that water distribution systems function effectively.
Majodina said reducing water losses requires a multi-pronged approach by the city.
This includes amongst others, improving billing and revenue collection to increase the funds available for maintenance and to provide better incentives for water to be used efficiently, improving pressure management and replacing ageing pipes which burst frequently.
The department, Rand Water, provincial government, and all Gauteng municipalities, are working together with civil society leaders, business leaders and experts to implement a large-scale communications and awareness campaign regarding the need to use water more sparingly.
“The meeting noted that an independent body called the Platform for a Water Secure Gauteng has been established to manage this campaign and that, as a first step, a dashboard has been created on the Department of Water and Sanitation website to provide the public with detailed information on the status of water supply in Gauteng,” Majodina said.
Meanwhile, measures currently being implemented by Johannesburg Water, in a bid to save water include:
• Throttling of water supply between 9pm and 4am, to enable reservoir levels to recover overnight. The city intends to implement this continuously from 14 November until the system has fully recovered.
• Procurement of a panel of contractors for emergency repairs of large diameter pipe water leaks as well as increasing the number of teams on standby during the week to address leaks and burst pipes.
• Increasing the number of repair and maintenance teams on duty during the weekend with the aim of improving leak repair response times from 48 hours to 24 hours.
• Increasing the number of trucks available to its leak repair and maintenance teams.
• Implementing cut-offs of illegal connections in key informal settlements.
• Implementing advanced pressure management systems, including the installation of 45 Smart Pressure Controllers (pressure reducing valves), in addition to the 15 which have been refurbished and retrofitted to date. This is aimed at reducing water losses at night when demand is low, which will substantially reduce water losses.
• Accelerating leak detection (to date, 12 100km water pipelines have been surveyed and 2 396 burst pipes, 6 727 leaking meters, 442 leaking valves and 259 leaking hydrants were identified and repaired.) This intervention has provided an estimated water demand reduction of 9 457 million litres per annum.
• Working with National Treasury to put in place a Public Private Partnership for the reduction of non-revenue water, to mobilize private sector funding and expertise for reducing non-revenue water.
“The political leadership in the three spheres of government are confident that these measures will be implemented with the necessary urgency. It was agreed that similar meetings will be held every Sunday to monitor progress,” Majodina said. – SAnews.gov.za
GabiK
Tue, 11/12/2024 - 12:11
119 views
Sewage Flows in Streets as KZN Township Faces Water Crisis
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Plans in place to temporarily repair the N2 Bridge ahead of festive season
Plans in place to temporarily repair the N2 Bridge ahead of festive season
President Cyril Ramaphosa has inspected the damaged Ezimbokodweni River Bridge on the N2 in KwaZulu-Natal today, following the bridge’s partial collapse on Monday, forcing the closure of the southbound carriageway and a major traffic diversion.
The President did the inspection ahead of the District Development Model (DDM) Presidential Imbizo held at Umnini Sportsfield in Umgababa.
Transport Minister Barbara Creecy, who accompanied the President, announced that the Department of Transport, with the South African National Roads Agency (SANRAL), aims to temporarily repair the bridge, targeting a December reopening to accommodate the festive season rush.
“I am here with a team of SANRAL engineers, who have inspected the bridge, and we’ve agreed on a temporary repair that will reopen the bridge at the start of December,” Creecy told SAnews.
She said more extensive work would follow next year, explaining that a permanent stabilisation plan is essential to ensure long-term safety for road users.
“Next year, further work will be done. It is quite complicated engineering work that will be done to stabilise the bridge on a permanent basis so that it can then be safe for road users.
“I am told by engineers that even when a solution is being put in place, we will not have another closure such as this one we are experiencing now. We will be able to work on this bridge installing a permanent solution with nighttime closures,” Creecy said.
The Minister noted that the situation at the moment poses incredible discomfort on motorists.
Highlighting the impact on motorists, Creecy noted that the situation is incredibly uncomfortable, as she was stuck in the traffic herself today, which underscores the urgency to provide a short-term solution, especially with heavy holiday traffic expected.
SANRAL CEO Reginald Demana explained to SAnews that initial inspections revealed structural damage to a support pillar, necessitating innovative temporary repairs on the aging bridge, which was built in 1964 using old technology.
“We’re planning to use hydraulic jacks to realign the bridge deck temporarily, allowing traffic flow, while we implement a lasting solution by early next year,” Demana said.
Demana said that passenger vehicles are currently being rerouted via the R102, while heavy trucks are directed further south to avoid overloading the provincial road. Long-term repairs involving modern engineering will proceed with nighttime closures scheduled for February and March 2025 to minimise disruption to road users. - SAnews.gov.za
DikelediM
Fri, 11/08/2024 - 15:25
48 views
BMA to meet with Mozambican leadership on border post closure
BMA to meet with Mozambican leadership on border post closure
The Border Management Authority (BMA) says it expects to start engaging with the Mozambican government following the closure of the Lebombo Border Post due to security concerns.
This amid protests owing to political tensions in that country, which have culminated in reports of vehicles being burnt on the Mozambican side of the border.
Speaking to media at the border post on Friday, BMA Commissioner Dr Mike Masiapato reiterated that the border remains closed at this stage.
“The status quo remains… where, the port is closed as we speak... We are [now] busy engaging with the Mozambicans to... make a determination about the way forward.
“The only difference is that the people here at the port, the leaders at the port levels, say that these issues are now getting more complicated, and they will not be able to make any significant determinations,” Masiapato said.
He advised travelers to use alternative ports to travel.
“We have advised them to use the Mananga port of entry. It is 60km from [Lebombo border post] and most taxi drivers have actually started doing that.
“[This] will enable them to enter into Eswatini and ultimately enter into Mozambique, so basically, those are Mozambicans trying to go back home. Th iiss the best we could have done.
“Once we have met with the people from [the Mozambique] side, we will be able to make a final determination,” he said.
Masiapato strongly advised South Africans not to travel into that country.
“South Africans are discouraged from planning any kind of travel into Mozambique, that is a very clear one. When talk about even a partial re-opening for the movement of persons, we are talking about Mozambicans who are going back home.
“We cannot keep them [Mozambicans] unless they want to be kept like the immigration officers that we kept here for their safety (sic). But for the ordinary Mozambicans who say ‘I want to go back home’, we should not necessarily continue to refuse them to do so.
“But for us to be able to do so, it must be an agreement between us and the Mozambicans primarily on their ability to receive them and to do border management activities on them – particularly immigration activities,” he said.
Masiapato said that on the Mozambican side, the BMA has not received any indication of South Africans “who are under siege”.
“The only issue that we had on Wednesday was the issue of the… South African trucks that were empty that wanted to come back.
“When we did a partial re-opening, all those trucks came back. We were also able to repatriate around six petroleum trucks that carry fuel and all of those. We had to take them out of… the Mozambican side because of the danger that such kind of trucks have,” Masiapato said. – SAnews.gov.za
NeoB
Fri, 11/08/2024 - 13:09
42 views
Walking Joburg’s Biggest, Baddest River: Gold Dust and Gunk
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KZN teams on standby ahead of predicted adverse weather
KZN teams on standby ahead of predicted adverse weather
The KwaZulu-Natal provincial government has announced that highly efficient and dedicated teams are on standby with an expected drop in temperatures later this week, with a possibility of snow.
While the South African Weather Service (SAWS) has not issued an official weather warning, the weather service predicts the possibility of snow over the high lying areas of the Western Cape from 29 September 2024, which will spread into the Eastern Cape and KwaZulu-Natal by 30 September 2024.
Addressing a media briefing on Thursday, KwaZulu-Natal MEC for Transport and Human Settlements Siboniso Duma said the Road Incident Management Systems (RIMS) led by South African National Roads Agency Limited (SANRAL) comprising of all key role players on the national, provincial, and municipal road networks were putting together a consolidated plan.
“They are identifying areas where joint operations and coordination will be established - covering all notorious roads and areas identified from past experiences.
“The department's Road Traffic Inspectorate is establishing a satellite centre on top of Van Reenen’s Pass to ensure quick action and road closure to mitigate against people getting trapped in the snow,” the MEC said.
This satellite centre will start operating on Saturday afternoon and operate on a 12-hour shift.
Traffic law enforcement officials are already involved in the coordination of possible road closures and observation of major routes in consultation with the N3 Toll Concession.
“The focus is on the N3 between Harrismith, Tugela Toll, R617 between Kokstad and Underberg, N2 Ingeli and N3 Mooi River, and others. We wish to indicate that the team will also be responsible for escorting trucks and vehicles to ensure that there is no congestion on the road.
“However, members of the public and motorists are urged to reschedule or postpone their journeys in anticipation of any eventuality. Prevention is better than cure.
“Motor graders are currently being sharpened to respond with … urgency to remove any snow before accumulating on the road. More than 10 graders will be stationed in identified routes to ensure that our response is faster,” the MEC said.
The province has 21 graders which will be on standby as part of strengthening prevention measures.
“On Wednesday, we interacted with SAWS. They informed us that KwaZulu-Natal will be affected by snowfall from Monday into Tuesday. The areas that are expected to be affected include Ladysmith, Underberg, Drakensberg as well as Giant Castle, and other high-ground area.
“In addition, they emphasised that, in all likelihood, snowfall will stop on Tuesday but will be followed by rainfall in various parts of the province, including Durban and other coastline areas,” Duma said.
The MEC said the provincial government has started engaging with key stakeholders to ensure that everyone works together to avoid any crisis and ensure the safety of road users.
“We have continuous engagements with road freight industry stakeholders such as operators - trucking companies – companies that are managing and supplying drivers.
“The South African National Taxi Council and bus councils, bus and truck associations are key stakeholders as we strengthen our road safety measures. We do not want to leave out port operators and the entire value chain of fast-moving consumer goods,” Duma said.
The provincial government has assigned engineers in consultation with SANRAL to look at the impact of the recent heavy snowfall on the road infrastructure.
“The truck congestion on N3 last weekend compels us to intensify our plans aimed at modernisation and development of rail transport – both freight and passenger.
“Working with the Minister of Transport Barbara Creecy, the Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (PRASA) and other main roleplayers, as KwaZulu-Natal we believe that we must ensure that we deploy wagons to move cargo from road to rail, with a specific focus on certain goods, such as coal.
“In addition, we want to improve rail services in the province so that it could serve as the backbone of public transport while at the same time recognising the huge challenges currently facing commuter rail services in KwaZulu-Natal and throughout the country,” he said. - SAnews.gov.za
nosihle
Thu, 09/26/2024 - 11:11
219 views
Villagers Have Had No Tap Water for 15 Years, but They Live 3KM From a Dam
The Maluti-a-Phofung municipality is intermittently supplying Jwala-Boholo and Qoqolosing villages with water trucks
Choosing the Right Forklift for Your Business Needs
Forklifts are essential for businesses that manage heavy lifting, stock management, and warehouse operations. They help move materials efficiently, saving both time and physical effort. With so many options available, it’s important to know what type of forklift suits your needs, whether you’re looking to buy, rent, or hire. Types of Forklifts Understanding the different …