Title – Gap year students killed in crash
Source – www.bbc.co.uk
Date – 19th March 2009
The tragic loss of 3 young men setting out on the adventure of a lifetime in such a terrible accident is not something any parent should have to deal with and not one I would even pretend to understand. My condolences go out to their family and friends.
This once again highlights the dangers of road travel in foreign countries and having driven on the roads in South Africa myself, I know not only how dangerous they can be, but also how the ‘rules’ vary considerably from what we are used to at home; how the speed cars drive at is astounding; how many obstacles there are to avoid (in the form of pedestrians, stray animals and general debris); and sadly how many accidents are head-on and lead to fatalities.
In the months I spent in
South Africa I sadly drove past many accidents where there had clearly been serious injury or fatalities. Several of these involved the local ‘minibus taxis’ which are usually crammed as full as they can be with passengers (as a rule of thumb count the number of seats and double it).Source – www.bbc.co.uk
Date – 19th March 2009
The tragic loss of 3 young men setting out on the adventure of a lifetime in such a terrible accident is not something any parent should have to deal with and not one I would even pretend to understand. My condolences go out to their family and friends.
This once again highlights the dangers of road travel in foreign countries and having driven on the roads in South Africa myself, I know not only how dangerous they can be, but also how the ‘rules’ vary considerably from what we are used to at home; how the speed cars drive at is astounding; how many obstacles there are to avoid (in the form of pedestrians, stray animals and general debris); and sadly how many accidents are head-on and lead to fatalities.
In the months I spent in
One of the parents assessment that these young men were just in the “wrong place at the wrong time” is probably the most accurate statement regarding this accident, sadly it does not make it any easier for them to bear.
We have recently commented on a number of tragic road accidents in this blog, which demonstrates the dangers travellers face on roads all over the world:
· Vietnam bus plunge ‘kills 10’
· Belgians die in Egypt coach crash
· Families pay tribute to Britons killed in Ecuador bus crash
At Beyond The Blue (Safe Gap Year) our Gap Year and Independent Travel Safety & Awareness Workshop (GYITSA) considers issues of Transport Options alongside sessions on Travel Safety, Travel Health, Travel Equipment, Travel Insurance, Destination Advice, Documentation, Travel Money and Insurance and more. Tragedies like this accident happen in every part of the world but I don’t believe there is a country in the world where the level of road traffic accidents should put us off travelling. There are however considerations and judgements we should make in regard to our transport options, to reduce the inherent risks they present.
Please visit our website at www.safegapyear.com or join us our Facebook Page and our Facebook Group. For a complete list of Blog entries visit our National Press Archive page.
For more information on any of our services, please call us on 0845 602 55 95 or Contact Us.
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