Niël Terblanché
An investigation will be launched into the cause of an incident where a truck transporting fuel from the coast overturned while it was driving on the road behind the dunes on Sunday afternoon.
Emergency services from both Swakopmund and Walvis Bay were dispatched to ensure that the accident scene is safe and that the driver of the truck received the proper medical attention.
Fears were that the fuel inside the tanker might pose a danger to other road users as well as pollute the area if it spilled out of the tank it was transported in.
A member of the emergency services said that spillage was minimal and that they managed to contain it while waiting for a recovery team.
When the recovery team arrived on the scene they pumped the content of overturned tanker into a secondary tanker.
According to an eyewitness it seemed as if the driver suddenly lost control over the vehicle and that it overturned while driving straight on the dual carriage road.
The accident occurred about ten kilometres from the turn-off to Swakopmund.
An eyewitness to the accident said many other motorists and truckers stopped at the scene to assist the driver, who managed to free himself from the wreckage by kicking out the windscreen of the truck’s cab.
One of the first responders to the scene said that the driver sustained only slight injuries but that he was transported to the hospital for medical treatment and observation.
Traffic from Walvis Bay had to be diverted to the shoulder of the newly constructed road because the overturned truck blocked both lanes of the dual carriageway.
