FOR many Malaysians, it is a must to give way to emergency vehicles such as ambulances or police cars with their respective sirens turned on, as time is crucial to saving any life that could possibly be in danger.
Recently, a video surfaced on social media on Saturday (Jan 6) of an SUV refusing to give way to an ambulance in Sri Aman, Sarawak. Did such an incident really happen?
Verdict:
TRUE
In a statement on Saturday (Jan 6), Sri Aman district police chief DSP Mathew Manggie said the police have taken action against the errant driver for refusing to give way to the ambulance based on Rule 9 of the Road Traffic Rules 166/59.
“The incident took place at KM6 on Jalan Sri Aman-Kuching where a car did not give way to an ambulance that was ferrying a patient to Hospital Sri Aman.
“Therefore, the Sri Aman Investigations and Traffic Enforcement Department proceeded to track down the vehicle, and action was taken against the driver,” said DSP Mathew.
Last Saturday (Jan 6), widow Annie Andrew said she was saddened by the SUV driver’s refusal to give way to the ambulance that was transporting her late husband to the hospital in a medical emergency.
Annie claimed that her husband, Morgan Alban, failed to receive preliminary treatment after the SUV driver refused to give way to the ambulance.
However, on Sunday (Jan 7), another social media post claiming to be from the family of the deceased said the matter with the said driver had been resolved.
“The driver had hearing problems and wasn’t purposely trying to block the ambulance.
“The son of the driver also showed us a hospital letter explaining his illness,” said the post.
In reacting to the matter on social media, Malaysians said stern action should be taken against the errant driver to prevent similar incidents from recurring.
https://www.facebook.com/
https://majoriti.com.my/
