NRSC to set up 100 emergency response stations on highways

General News of Sunday, April 7th, 2019

Source: citinewsroom.com

2019-04-07

The Ministry of Transportation, in collaboration with the National Road Safety Commission (NRSC), is setting up 100 emergency and first aid stations at strategic locations along the country's major highways.

Eight of these positions are already completed and fully equipped with medical supplies.

This is part of the measures to minimize deaths while preserving the lives of the victims of road accidents through emergency response measures.
In an interview with Citi News, Kwame Kodua Atuahene, the commission's communications officer, said the facilities would be manned 24 hours a day by the Ghana Red Cross with the support of NADMO, police and service. Ghana National Fire.

"In fact, when accidents happen, the emergency team strives to help injured victims deal with them badly, resulting in the death of some. We have deployed in areas such as Asuboi, Nstuam and Sampa and in all regions. These areas were selected based on the availability of data available and the frequency of incidents on this section. In Accra, you will find one right after the tollbooth. These have been strategically located.

Many believe that the increase in road accidents in the country is explained by the fact that agencies such as the NRSC do not have enough resources.

"Fastrack our upgrade to authority status to limit traffic accidents" – Road Safety Commission

Since its creation, the NRSC has been acting in an advisory capacity.

The Commission therefore asks the government to speed up the process to give it the status of the Authority.

He says that although giant steps have been taken in this direction, the government should not rest on its oars to give it more power to enforce the highway code.

Kwame Kodua Atuahene lamented the current absence of the Commission's power to enforce road safety regulations, insisting that the government should ask it to tackle the non-compliance with road safety standards.

"Three months ago, the Cabinet approved the transformation of the Commission into an authority. The law is already in the public ministry. I imagine that in the coming weeks, it will be presented to Parliament for the other processes to take place. This is to say that the government must speed up this process. They should be willing to help implement some of these interventions. "