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Illegal spinning in SA: Driver narrowly avoids cheering crowds

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Cape Town - Another video of illegal street spinning in South Africa has surfaced.

This time the driver spins his BMW in a residential area, much to the amusement of the cheering bystanders.

Burning rubber

The video, uploaded by CICA, shows the BMW driver exiting a fuel station and slowly making his way down a street. Bystanders do all they can to stop traffic and other bystanders from blocking his path. 

The driver lets loose with some spinning and drifting down the street, narrowly avoiding the crowd and other vehicles. He parades up and down the road with smoke bellowing from the car's tyres while onlookers clap, scream and cheer him on.

WACTH: Illegal spinning - This video shows why it's incredibly dangerous in SA

Then, just to show off bit more, the man leaps from his BMW while the car spins in circles sans driver.

This type of behaviour is illegal and downright dangerous. Fortunately no one was injured.

Watch the video below:

Knocked out

In January 2017, Wheels24 reported on a cellphone clip showing shows a man being struck down by a BMW at an illegal spinning event.

This video is not for sensitive viewers.

The video, posted on YouTube by CICA, gets underway as the BMW is spinning itself into a frenzy.

The driver comes achingly close to the spectators each time and with each passing second it seems as if something is about to go seriously wrong.

About 12 seconds into the video, a man walks into the path of the spinning car. The BMW spins around and hits the man, violently knocking him to the ground.

The man appears to be unconscious as he lays on the ground while bystanders attempt to revive him. 


Do you think spinning should be made legal in SA, or should law enforcement step up and stop this practice? Let us know via emailFacebook and Twitter. 


Justice Project SA's national chairman, Howard Dembovsky, said: “Spinning” is an 'informal sport' which has been prevalent in South Africa for a long time now, and typically, the BMW E30 is the car of choice for this activity. It is akin to drifting, which is another “sport” practiced worldwide and has little or nothing to do with 'vrrr phaa' exhaust pipe spluttering of VW Golfs the minister asserts causes so many road fatalities.

"In uncontrolled environments, spinning/drifting is extremely dangerous and although I have seen worse, this particular video is yet another demonstrative example of just how dangerous it can be. 

"However, it should have become abundantly clear to all concerned by now that no volume of “preaching” is going to make this practice go away. In my view, what is needed is for a safe environment in which it can be practiced to be provided, preferably in the very townships where it is prevalent - as opposed to thinking that such persons will go to a race track like Kyalami, Swartkop Raceway, etc. to do so. Also key to such an intervention would be avoiding the propensity to over-regulate those venues, and to rather concentrate on crowd safety.

"I do, however, hasten to add that the relatively few injuries sustained currently at such informal events can in no way be compared to the current road carnage experienced on our roads and therefore, blaming it for more than 20 000 deaths on our roads each year (20 180 in 2015, according to the Global Burden of Disease Study 2015) is, in my view, irrational. Township antics may contribute in some small way to the globular carnage count, but by far, the biggest problem on our roads still lies with “ordinary” drivers, their propensity to take risks, failure to identify hazards and take the appropriate evasive action.

"We can blame everything and anything we like, but ultimately, while people can “buy” their driving licenses from corrupt officials and then get away with breaking almost every fundamental rule of the road, so long as they do so within the speed limit, nothing is going to change. Whilst individuals undeniably have a role to play, ultimately, the authorities are the only ones with the power to effect the necessary interventions and until such time as they start owning up to this fact and doing their jobs, things will continue to worsen. Locking up alleged offenders for extended periods prior to their conviction and even the commencement of their trial, as the minister and the CEO of the RTMC assert it is, is NOT the answer either - just by the way - and is similarly irrational."

Arrive Alive's Johan Jonck said: "Very disturbing to see this type of footage. We clearly do not "GET" the need for safety awareness! Our roads are not playgrounds and our vehicles are not toys to play with. A steering wheel can become a murder weapon in the hands of the wrong driver.

"This is one of the examples of why our younger drivers are such threats on the roads - we do not expect to find a more mature older driver behind the wheel of this vehicle. Our younger drivers simply cannot resist the urge to "impress" and act with restraint - these acts are not simply an example of "driver error", but rather or ignorance, blatant recklessness and disregard for the rules of the road.

"To those who say science should not be in our schools - perhaps a greater awareness of speed, force, momentum, gravitational forces etc would help to prevent becoming a victim of such crashes."

Arrive Alive lists tips to reduce road trauma among young road users

  1. The same platforms that can cause distractions can be used effectively to share safety information with road users for informed decision making.

  2. Creating awareness is the first step to ensuring responsible behaviour on the roads.

  3. It is important that these road safety messages be shared in a manner that is easily accessible and in a manner that appeals to the younger road user.

  4. It is important to emphasize that being safe, protective and caring on the road IS COOL!

  5. Vehicle insurance telematics technology can reward the responsible young driver.

  6. This technology can offer feedback to both drivers and their parents on excessive speeding, harsh braking and acceleration and dangerous cornering.

  7. Other technologies can be applied to young drivers who have already committed offenses. These include continuous alcohol monitoring systems to prevent alcohol use and alcohol ignition interlock devices that prevent the driver from starting the car if he/she has used alcohol.

  8. There is a wide variety of safety and emergency rescue apps that could help the young driver caught in an emergency on the road.

For more guides on this, visit Arrive Alive here.


 

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