Governor of Edo State, Mr Godwin Obaseki has expressed his sympathy for the victims and families of those who were involved in the auto crash that claimed nine lives on Tuesday, along Upper Sakponba Road in Benin City, Edo State.
Obaseki, who received the news with sadness and great distress, said:
“particularly painful is the fact that the people were only just setting out early in the morning in search of their daily bread when the unfortunate incident occurred.”
He added that the state would soon unveil the new traffic wardens who have been undergoing training to take over traffic management on the state’s roads to check accidents and unprofessional conducts by drivers on the roads.
“The sad event brings the need to enhance the regulation of road traffic in the state into sharp focus. Which is why apart from our commitment to fixing our road infrastructure, we have recruited and trained a group of young men and women in the state to take charge of traffic management in the state,” the Governor said.
The visibly shaken Governor said that there were no words adequate to express the grief which members of the families of the accident victims have been suddenly thrust into, and assured that
“as a government we want them to know that we stand with them in this desperately difficult time. Our prayers are with the friends and families of the victims as well as the entire Edo people in this trying time and our pledge to do all in our power to improve living conditions in the state remains unshaken.”
The unfortunate incident claimed the lives of about 10 persons including a bean cake seller rushing to the nearest market to begin business for the day.
There is a Myth that heavy duty vehicles do not have brakes. Unlike smaller vehicles, Heavy duty vehicles do not operate on Hydraulic Brakes but are run on Air Brake which has a number of advantages including that
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The supply of air is unlimited, so the brake system can never run out of its operating fluid, as hydraulic brakes can. Minor leaks do not result in brake failures.
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Air line couplings are easier to attach and detach than hydraulic lines eliminating the risk of air getting into hydraulic fluid since there is no hydraulic fluid. Air brake circuits on trailers can be easily attached and removed by operators with appropriate training.
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Air not only serves as a fluid for transmission of force, but also stores potential energy. So it can serve to control the force applied. Air brake systems include an air tank that stores sufficient energy to stop the vehicle if the compressor fails.
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Air brakes are effective even with considerable leakage, so an air brake system can be designed with sufficient “fail-safe” capacity to stop the vehicle safely even when leaking.
Yet on Tuesday, a Trailer left its lane and plunged into the ill-fated commercial vehicle, killing ten persons. Reports reaching ETN24 is that the heavy duty vehicle was attempting to dodge another vehicle which suddenly drove into his lane without proper signal. The driver was said to have quickly reported himself at the nearest Police Station.
