Somethings you take for granted can cost your life---an account of how this fresh graduate from Institute of Professional Studies(IPS) almost died through car accident just for acting carelessly.
On the 13th of April this year; at 9pm in the evening, I was all alone in my younger sister’s shop working on my blogger blog layout and all of a sudden I started dozing off around 10:30pm so I paused, closed my laptop and packed all my things; ready to go and give myself some sleep for the night. I then locked the shop up and begun to walk to my pathetic room for sleep. And for your knowing, the shop is in the compound of our house.
Upon getting to the middle of the distance to my room, I heard the sound of a car over speeding on the road which is only a house away from my house. I stopped for a very short while – might be 5 or 6 seconds to just continue to listen to the sound the over speeding car; because it sounded weird to me for a car to be cruising at such top speed at 11pm in the evening when most of the street lights are not in proper shape so they are not giving off light. I then overlooked it and begun to continue my very short journey to my sleeping chamber.
At about 11:10pm, when I was just some few steps to the interior of my room, I then heard again from the road a greater sound of a car impacting another. So I was asking myself; what is wrong now? I just continue walking to the point I realized that the door to the corridor leading to my room was locked; since it was late in the night they don’t have to leave the doors open so as to keep intruders away. I have to call my elder brother to come and open the door for me to pass. When he finally came I told him what I anticipate has happened on the street. He then sighed and went back to his room. I also went straight to my room.
After I had put my things down, I did not sleep but headed out to the supposed accident scene. And lo and behold, it was a crash as I suspected. The collision was between an ash saloon car and a yellow sprinter car.
Upon careful unofficial investigations into the matter that night at the scene, it was established that the ash saloon car is the same car I heard over speeding on the road some few minutes past.
And lest I forget, the road on which the accident occurred is a narrow single carriageway.
According to eyewitnesses, the sprinter car tried to overtake a parked taxi car. While in the process of overtaking, the taxi moved causing the sprinter to make a head on collision with the saloon car which is on its lane and already cruising at a top speed.
The saloon car was occupied by two young men of which I know one of them. Their car to me is old and has no seat belts. Trust me; they had to go through the strongest head impact in their life that night. In the collision, the air bag of the driver burst causing him to hit his head against the windscreen so fucking hard. Damn. He nearly went unconscious. His partner suffered the same fate. They were both lucky they did not black out and just die.
The windscreen of their car is not cheap. It is of high quality and durable. In my view, it is the windscreen that saved their pathetic lives that night. Otherwise, they would have come out of the car through the windscreen onto the road. Who knows what would have happened to them then? The sprinter might have run over them or they would hit their bodies hard against the ground; onto the curbs; into the drains; and get physically deformed or just die afterward. However, the windscreen of their car got totally damaged but did not crush or break out.
As for the sprinter driver, he was in the company of two other men believed to be his friends or maybe people he just picked up from the road to drop. A moment after the collision, he came out of the car with his hands on the head while saying, “As for this it is my fault.”
But other eyewitnesses blame the accident on the taxi driver for being shylock and not willingly allowing the sprinter driver to overtake him. Because then, they believe the taxi driver saw the saloon car approaching with top speed. He did not even stop to share a word after the impact, he just moved on and went his way. I guess he might be saying, “To hell with them. Next time do not overtake and over speed.”
Others too blame the impact on the guys who were using the saloon car. Saying, “If they were not over speeding they would have been able to allow some time and space for the sprinter driver to get back on his lane – knowing well that the taxi driver did not allow him to overtake.”
Aside the sprinter driver’s conceded self-blame, eyewitnesses believe that he was dozing off so he did not even see the saloon car approaching. They also say, the driver of the saloon car seems to be applying brakes but the sprinter keeps approaching unconcerned.
While we were still at the accident scene, around 11:40pm sharing our thoughts and shifting blames on what has just happened, some two guys appeared from nowhere and revealed that they were at the junction looking for car to their destination, they luckily saw the sprinter car approaching; which appears to be going in their direction but one of them said “when we stopped him to pick us he did not mind us – he went off. That was just about 30 minutes ago”.
And do not forget, the accident happened at 11:10pm.
So others were also saying, “If the sprinter driver had listened and stopped to pick up the two guys who were at the junction looking for car to their destination, the accident would not have happened.” Because then he would have allowed some time and space for the taxi car to move without the overtaking; and the saloon car to pass before he gets there.
However, there is this man who strongly believes that if the sprinter driver had listened and stopped to pick up the two guys, he would have come and kill them in the accident.
The guys who were in the saloon car were quickly taken to a nearby clinic for a short medical treatment to their injured foreheads and necks.
After the treatment we had some exchanges with the driver and he revealed that even the car is not his and the owner did not know he has moved his car and do not even know the car has been involved in a near fatal accident. I am free with him, and because of this friendly relationship, he sometimes gives me the car keys for me to clean and keep an eye on it for him. So he left the keys with me this time.
Convo between me and the saloon car driver
So I asked him, where were you in a hurry to and you are driving at that speed? (I thought they were going to pick some girls to come and #at.
Him: We were going to buy food for my friend’s sister.
Him: I never knew this is how accident is. When I came out of the car I could not even see anything.
He then looked into my face and said: Bro, so I was coming die?
Me: Yes!!!
And then everybody went like hahahahahahahahahahahahahaha… Just for responding yes to his question.
Me: How much did you spend on the medicals?
Him: The only money I had on me was GHS 20 ($5). And the medical expenses was GHS 60 ($16), so I had to borrow from somebody I rarely know who leaves in that area. It is a private clinic, and you know the "cash and carry system", you pay before you are taken care of.
Me: What work do you do?
Him: Hm. I am a security guard at the fuel filling station down there. I have managed to do a course at Institute of Professional Studies (IPS). I graduated just yesterday and I will be leaving Accra for Takoradi. (I think he said Takoradi – I am not sure, maybe I have forgotten).
Me: Takoradi? For what?
Him: I have got a job at a bank there to do.
Me: And you nearly died?
Him: Hm. I don’t even know what to say. I am shocked.
But then he was wearing his security attire. He then went into the accident car and brought out his graduation dress. It is white and neatly folded.
Revealation from the sprinter driver
According to the people who were in the sprinter car with the driver, they said the driver told them that "the car is a company car and I will be going to Tema harbor tomorrow dawn with my boss to clear some goods for the company. It is urgent. So I am driving fast to the house to have some short sleep and return to pick my boss at dawn. Now look at what has happened to the car. The engine is damaged."
Finally, in order to avoid the Ghana Police Patrol Team from spotting the accident cars on the road, they have to quickly move them off into hiding.
This real story is a bit confusing but try and understand.
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