VIDEO: Driver’s good decision saves lives

'I had a 34-ton load and if the truck hadn't stopped I would probably have killed a lot of people at the bottom of the hill'

September 9, 2016

Bianca Pindral 1 minute read

Eddie Prinsloo, the truck driver, standing beside Deo Mogaoera and Thandi Morare, Mogale City traffic officers who applauded his decision to drive into the embankment when he realised that his truck had no brakes.

A 50-year-old truck driver saved many lives this morning by not making the same mistake as many other truck drivers. Eddie Prinsloo was hauling a load of recycled materials to the Velox depot on the R28, heading from Cedar Lodge towards Silverstar Casino at 7.30am on 9 September. When he reached the top of the hill and started to descend to the bottom, he heard a strange blowing sound right behind him. He changed to a lower gear and stepped on the brakes.

“I was shocked to discover that I no longer had any brakes and could therefore not decelerate,” Eddie said.

Instead of panicking, Eddie’s thoughts became clear – he was going to try to stop the truck before it reached an uncontrollable speed.

“I looked in my rear-view mirror and started waving to the traffic behind me to stop,” Eddie said. “At first the drivers honked and cursed out of their windows, but then a man in a white bakkie realised what was happening and assisted me by blocking the traffic with his vehicle.”

Eddie then drove his truck into the steep embankment on the right-hand side of the road. The truck came to an immediate stop as the tall grass served as natural brakes.

“I had a 34-ton load and if the truck hadn’t stopped I probably would have killed a lot of people at the bottom of the hill,” Eddie said. “If I had kept on going, the truck could have reached a speed of 120km/h.”

Eddie has been a truck driver for 26 years and said this had only happened to him once before. “From that experience, I learned to have respect for the vehicle’s extreme power and destructive capabilities.”

Deo Mogoera, a Mogale City traffic officer, said Eddie has no idea how many lives he saved by making this choice. “The truck would have caused incredible devastation if it had reached the Cradlestone Mall intersection,” she said.

Two traffic lanes were closed off by traffic police to ensure the safety of passing vehicles. The truck has since been removed.