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Continental J. Applied Sciences 5: 44 - 46, 2010 ISSN: 1597 - 9928 Wilolud Journals, 2010 http://www.wiloludjournal.com

FLYING CRASH HELMETS AND CASES OF MULTIPLE VEHICULAR ACCIDENTS IN DELTA STATE,

NIGERIA

1Anyanwu, E. B.,1Mabiaku, T. O., 2Akathor, A. and 3Okperi, B. 1Department of Family Medicine, Faculty of Clinical Medicine, Delta State University, Abraka, Nigeria

2Department of Surgery Faculty of Clinical Medicine, Delta State University, Abraka, Nigeria. 3Department of Paediatrics, Faculty of Clinical Medicine, Delta State University, Abraka, Nigeria.

ABSTRACT Recently by a legislative fiat, all commercial motorcyclists and non- commercial motorcyclists were advised to always wear crash helmets while riding their motorcycles. Passengers were also urged by same law to also wear crash helmets. This law drew varying kinds of reception among the motorcyclists and the populace nation-wide. Many welcomed the idea with good reasons and joy, while others felt that the legislation will not serve any useful purpose. This short report is to highlight the peoples concern and attitude to this desired safety mechanism.

KEYWORDS: Crash helmet, commercial motorcyclist, legislation

INTRODUCTION Accidents are relatively common on our roads. Most of these are preventable, and with some extra care and caution can be totally avoided and their adverse effects can be prevented.

These are several safety mechanisms that have been built into vehicles to enhance safety, and such tools include safety belts and air-bags. Safety belts if properly used have been noted to be life-saving.

Recently, to ensure the safety of motorcyclist and their passengers, the Federal Road Safety Commission enacted a decree making it compulsory for riders on motorcycle to wear crash helmets. This is to stop the rampant cases of head injury from accidents involving motorcycles and other road users.

Surprisingly, the commercial motorcyclist (Okada) and even their passengers, whom the decree hope to protect, protested against the use of crash helmets.

This article aims to enumerate the reason against the use of crash helmets and also to educate our populace to use this safety device.

DISCUSSION Recently, the Federal Government of Nigeria, through the appropriate Ministry and the Federal Road Safety Commission, decreed that the commercial and non-commercial motorcyclists should always wear crash helmets when riding their motorcycles (FRSC, 2007). All passengers are also expected to wear separate crash helmets.

This was essentially for the safety of the passengers and the riders in case of road traffic accidents.

This was due to the fact that too many accidents with fatalities were being reported daily from all parts of the country which involved motorcycle riders and other road users. And usually, the fatalities were mostly on the part of the motorcyclists and their passengers who often sustain bruises, broken bones and occasionally head injuries, and even death.

The economic situation in the country also means that most able bodied young men are not gainfully employed, and therefore they resort to riding motorcycles as a means of transportation, in order to earn a living.

Also, the present economic meltdown has led to a lot of job loss and reduction in new employment creations, leading to more entrants into the motorcycle riding as a means of daily sustenance and livelihood.

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Unfortunately, many of these young men do not have any proper training on how to ride and handle these motorcycles. Also, they do not obtain proper riding licenses. This means that there are several inexperienced motorcyclists riding on the roads, whose sole desire and aim is to make as much money as possible. This makes them to ride at neck-breaking speed, are usually very careless, often abrasive and abusive. They often do not obey traffic codes and laws, and will not maintain the motorcycles properly. This results in safety compromise brakes not working, no signal lights, and most of them often indicate that they are about to turnoff the road with the use of their foot pointing either right or left. On-coming vehicles are expected to understand that they are signaling.

All of these occasionally lead to fatal accidents which necessitated the executive law about the compulsory wearing of crash helmets both by the motorcyclist and other passengers.

But, then, the motorcyclists and even the populace that are expected to be protected by the law are protesting about it. The cyclists are angry about the money that they are going to expend in buying the crash helmets. They claim that the government will want to supply the original helmet through a party man who will therefore sell to them at a high rate.

The fears of the public are numerous. The intending passengers feel that the wearing of a common helmet could be dangerous. They feel that any diseases of the head, skin or hair could be spread easily from person, to person.

The women folks feel that the crash helmets will destroy or disturb their fashionable head gear which often takes a long time to design and wear.

Majority of the populace fear that the wearing of a common crash helmet could be used to charm persons by ritualists and they therefore object to wearing it.

The sight of beautifully dressed ladies, with wide headgears to match and then the crash helmets gingerly placed on the headgears is a common sight in most cities. The ladies will not remove their headgears (which often take long time to arrange and tie) and will simply place the helmets on the headgears. The helmets are therefore not strapped down and are falling and flying off allover the place.

These flying helmets occasionally gets entangled in between the wheel of the on-coming motorcycles who often loose control and crash causing varying kinds of injury to the riders and passengers.

Some of these flying helmets have been crushed by on-coming cars often leading to punctured tyres. The crashing of these flying helmets into windscreens of on-coming cars is commonly reported.

A fall from as little as two feet can result in a traumatic head injury. That is why wearing a helmet while riding on wheels is so important for people of all ages. A helmet acts as a second skull. When worn correctly, helmets can prevent up to 80% of brain injuries during an accident.

Be consistent. Remember a serious brain injury can happen in a fall of just two feet (Dean Health System).

Determined to help reduce the rate of accident involving motorcycles on Nigeria roads, Chevron and its partners in the Escravos Gas-to-Liquid (EGTL) project organized a road safety workshop for commercial motorcyclists popularly known as Okada in Warri, Delta State.

The programme, tagged public safety awareness/ enhanced okada safety awareness programme also featured a donation of 500 safety helmets to the motorcyclists, safety talks by officers of the Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC), safety talks on how to identify the right safety helmet for tropical countries such as Nigeria as well as demonstration on the proper use of safety helmet (Adesina, 2009).

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Anyanwu, E. B et al.,: Continental J. Applied Sciences 5: 44 - 46, 2010

The following suggestions and recommendations were made to enable the law to be properly enforced.

1. All motorcyclists are to have proper evaluation and testing for proper licensing for commercial purposes. 2. There should be a regular and continuing education to these riders on the need to wear crash helmets. 3. The populace should also be properly educated on the need for the use of these helmets. 4. The proper crash helmets should be made available. Not the present safety helmets that are used in

industries. These are very light.

We cannot continue to watch our people suffer various degrees of fractures and head injuries. We should act now and get protected.

REFERENCES Adesina, D. (2009). Chevron holds safety week, gives 500 helmets to motorcyclists. The Guardian, Monday, July 27, 2009 Vol. 27, No. 11 pp 14.

Dean Health System. Crash Helmet Safety Programme http://www.deancare.com/dhs/crash/

Federal Road Safety Corps Establishment Act 2007: Sections 10(4) and 28(2)

Received for Publication: 17/06/10 Accepted for Publication: 09/07/10

Corresponding author Anyanwu, E. B. Department of Family Medicine, Faculty of Clinical Medicine, Delta State University, Abraka, Nigeria E-mail: ebirian@yayoo.com