911

There is a particularly crazy T junction that I have to come out of regularly here in Santo Domingo.  The road markings are very confusing, so cars cross and weave in a chaotic manner when trying to enter and exit this junction on the main by-pass.   Really they need traffic lights there. 

The other evening I was waiting to exit the junction and a pick-up truck was waiting to turn in.  A motor-bike beside me decided to go at the same moment the pick-up decided to enter and the result was one motor-bike rider flying off his bike on to the road. 

Coming down from Quito the other day the pick-up truck in front of me suddenly veered crazily off the road into the ditch and ended up upside down.  I can only assume the driver fell asleep. 

Witnessing accidents here is a common occurrence.  Traffic lights do not work… for years!  Drivers have no lane discipline, roads have huge pot holes and drink driving is common.  Until recently if an accident happened you just had to wait until someone came along to help.  This year a 911 call centre opened in Santo Domingo. 

When I witnessed those accidents recently I had someone to call!  It was a great novelty.  In both cases there were people injured, so it was amazing to be able to phone for an ambulance.  I did have some difficulty in trying to describe where we were both times as so many streets do not have names.  But I did manage to get the message across eventually.  And most importantly help did arrive. 

It is good to know, that at least in the cities, there is now emergency help available.  It is not something we take for granted.