The Royal Malaysian Police (PDRM) have reported an average of more than 500,000 road accidents from 2010 to 2019. They involve almost 7,000 deaths during the period.
That said, some of you may either experience being one or witness one before you. But either way would be such a terrifying experience.
If you happen to witness a road crash in front of you, as a bystander, what should you do? Should you ignore or help out?
Find out the most appropriate action you should take.
You are not helping if..
As you wade through the highway, you saw a car in front of you run into a road divider – which meant quite a severe accident.
In every scenario, slow down your speed and lend help.
Do not slow down the vehicle just to record a video of the incident. That is the last thing you should do. You are not only being self-center but causing traffic to slow down.
For safety, please park your car in a safer place if you wish to help out.
How to help a vehicle involved in an accident
Without further ado, we will share with you the right way for you to help road accident victims.
Check the surrounding
An accident recently happened? You can stop your car in a safer place to lend help.
However, if you see many volunteers at the scene, just continue with your drive. You are only slowing down the traffic if you join the crowds.
Jot down the details
Do you have a dash cam installed in your vehicle?
That is great. Your dashcam video footage can support the victim of the accident case.
If you do not have one, try to recall your memories of the accident. This is helpful to assist the police’s investigation from a witness’ point of view.
Write down some necessary details of the accidents. Examples are the location, involved plate number, number of victims, the severity of injuries, and cause of the accident.
Dial 999
Immediately phone the emergency hotline (999) to report the accident! Inform the condition of the victim so that the medical team can prepare.
Other than that, do inform important details to facilitate assistance. For example, the type of vehicle, the number of vehicles involved, etc.
Lend a help
Check on the condition of the crash victims to make sure they are okay. Do offer to help if you are able.
You may help victims who have had light injuries. You may reach out to them and offer to help inform their emergency contacts (if there are any). An example is family members or relatives.
However, do not attempt to help anyone who has had severe injuries. Despite your best intentions, you could accidentally make the injury worse. Any unnecessary move can be fatal.
Let the trained medical professionals tend to the injuries, but you can provide comfort by reassuring victims that help is on the way.
Allocate tasks
You may further ask the other volunteers to carry out different tasks.
If some volunteers are busy helping the victims, the others may keep their eyes on the traffic flow. If possible, set up flares or traffic triangles to warn other drivers of the accident.
Give statement as a witness
When the police arrive, provide the relevant facts and your contact information. Be honest, factual, and consistent with your statements. Your statement is helpful to ease their claim procedure.
Have empathy and help victims of a road accident
Such unfortunate incidents can happen to anyone regardless of time and place. Therefore, have empathy to help if you witness one.
It does not cost you to be a caring road user and offer assistance. Spread kindness.
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