| James Kon and Daniel Lim |
A TWO-vehicle collision, which occurred along the Lumut-Seria Bypass yesterday, claimed the life of one individual and injured another.
Eleven firefighters from the Seria Fire Station, led by Station Officer Muhammad Ali bin Hassan, were called to the junction near Badas in Kuala Belait at 4.08pm, where they found that the two vehicles – a black car with a Malaysian license plate, and a white pickup truck – had plunged into a nearby ravine after veering off the highway.
Firefighters took 10 minutes to free the victims trapped inside their cars, using a piston ramp and spreader. They also used dry chemical powder to extinguish smoke emanating from the engine compartments of both vehicles, following the impact of the collision.
One driver was taken to the Suri Seri Begawan Hospital in a critical state, where he later succumbed to his injuries.
The driver of the pickup truck, meanwhile, required treatment for injuries to his left leg and neck.
In an interview with the Bulletin, Station Officer Muhammad Ali said, “To reach the accident site, we had to use the only U-turn available, which is near the housing area of Lumut and some distance away from Badas.
“Had there been a U-turn before the Third Battalion in Liang, for use by emergency vehicles in situations such as this, the time we took to arrive at the scene could have been significantly reduced,” the officer said.
He also reminded all road users to be more aware of their surroundings, while adhering to road safety regulations, to reduce the possibility of injuries and fatalities in car crashes.
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