Seoul – A woman in South Korea who tried to pass the written exam for a driver’s licence with near-daily attempts since April 2005 has finally succeeded on her 950th time.

The aspiring driver spent more than $4 200 in application fees, but until now had failed to score the minimum 60 out of a possible 100 points needed to get behind the wheel for a driving test.

Cha Sa-soon, 68, finally passed the written exam with a score of 60 on Wednesday, said Choi Young-chul, a police official at the drivers’ licence agency in Jeonju,  210km south of Seoul.

Police said Cha took the test hundreds of times, but had no specific total. Local media said she took the test 950 times.

Now she must pass a driving test before getting her licence, Choi said.

Repeated calls to Cha seeking comment went unanswered. She told the Korea Times newspaper she needed the licence for her vegetable-selling business.

- SAPA

A 31 year old man is fighting for his life in a Pretoria hospital after he was shot in the chest in a botched hijacking last night.

A husband and wife was traveling in the Bapsfontein area when they were hijacked, the man was shot in the chest and dumped in the veldt near the shooting range and left for dead.

He laid in the cold and wet weather through out the night; his wife somehow escaped from the Hijackers and alerted the SAPS. A massive search begun and the critically injured man was found lying in the veldt at around 12h00 this afternoon.

Netcare 911 paramedics were called to the scene, and worked tirelessly to stabilize the critically wounded man. Realizing the extent of his injuries and that the weather was closing in fast they called for the Netcare 1 Medical helicopter to airlift the patient to the Pretoria East hospital for further treatment.

Chris Botha

Netcare 911

A minibus taxi has driven into the shop front of the Edgars store in West Street, Durban.

Five shoppers and three shop employees were seriously injured after they were knocked down by the taxi which slammed into the busy store less than an hour ago.

Police spokesman Superintendent Vincent Mdunge said it is believed that the taxi driver was shot following an attempted hijacking outside the store shortly after 5:20pm.

“It is believed that he drove into the shop when he lost control of the vehicle,” he said.

Netcare 911’s Jeff Wicks, who is on scene, where the eight injured people are still being treated, described the store as “hazy”.

The vehicle hit a deodorant stand and that tins exploded.

“At this stage, we have no confirmed any deaths. We are still working on scene,” he said.

Japanese tyre maker Bridgestone Corp said on Monday it would quit Formula One next year, dealing a further blow to the sport after the recent withdrawal of other high-profile firms due to the global downturn.

Bridgestone said it would end its contract as the official tyre supplier to the FIA, raising questions over who would replace it after French rival Michelin pulled out in 2006 and US maker Goodyear left in 1998.

“Bridgestone today announced that it will not enter into a new tyre supply contract with the FIA Formula One World Championship series,” the Tokyo-based tyre and rubber industry giant said in a statement.

The move comes after Toyota Motor pulled out of hosting the Japanese Grand Prix, while Honda has sold its team as the companies struggled to fight off the global recession. There have also been casualties in other motor sports.

Bridgestone has supplied tyres to F1 for 13 years and has been the exclusive supplier to the series since 2007.

Its current contract expires at the end of the 2010 season.

Bridgestone, battered by a global auto industry slump amid the economic downturn, said it was “addressing the impact of the continuing evolution of the business environment.”

Bridgestone, which vies with Michelin to be the world’s top tyremaker, posted a net loss of 38.34 billion yen ($420 million) for January-June, a turnaround from a year-earlier profit of 37.24 billion yen.

Last month Bridgestone said it would shed nearly 900 jobs in Australia and New Zealand as it closes plants amid the worldwide slump in demand for cars.

Toyota Motor in July pulled out of hosting the Japanese Grand Prix at its Fuji Speedway circuit from next year.

Honda has sold its Formula One team while Suzuki and Subaru have withdrawn from the world rally championship. Motorcycle maker Kawasaki has exited the MotoGP and Mitsubishi is quitting the Dakar Rally.

The Japanese tyremaker, which also makes industrial rubber and chemical products and sporting goods, said it would redirect its resources toward new technologies and strategic products.

“The business environment is changing greatly,” company spokesperson Makoto Shiomi said.

“We need to concentrate our management resources on strategic areas and technological innovation,” he said, adding that one of the priorities would be development of more environmentally friendly products.

He added that Bridgestone was “not in a position to judge” which company would be the next official tyre supplier for Formula One.

Bridgestone says on its website that in 2009 it made about 40 000 Formula One tyres for 10 racing teams in its factory in Kodaira, a western suburb of Tokyo.

It also says online that its F1 exposure has boosted its brand recognition over the years.

“In 1996, Bridgestone’s brand recognition in Europe’s five largest countries was 13 percent, but by 2003 it had risen to 34 percent,” the company says.

“In recent years the arrival of Bahrain and China to the F1 championship has enabled Bridgestone to increase its activity in the Middle East and Far East.”

[Source AFP]

Also view:

• Tyres and Road Safety
• Run Flat Tyre Technology and Road Safety

The developers of the Arrive Alive website have decided that it is important to focus on 4×4 safety as a part of the online road safety initiative. This decision was also discussed on the Road Safety blog in a post titled “Road Safety awareness efforts should include 4×4 driving!”

To assist in thes efforts, the developers of the website gained the assistance of Andre Botha, a qualified 4×4 Tour & Overland Guide. We have asked Andre to share some thoughts on aspects that the 4×4 enthisiast / driver might not know, and of which we need to create awareness. I would like to share some of these thoughts:

• It is very important that we educate 4×4 & quad drivers on how to “tread lightly” in an off-road environment, in order not to cause any damage to the environment and even more so not to damage you vehicle or injure your passengers. Irresponsible driving (for example, excessive wheel spin) causes serious damage to roads which will start a huge erosion problem in the rainy seasons! Only drive on existing tracks!
• Statistics show us that the most off-road accidents happen at high speed in “on-road” gravel and tar road circumstances. Vehicles are heavily loaded, sometimes even with a overladed roof-rack and than the drivers can’t control the vehicle emergencies at high speed on this normal types of road surfaces.
• If you drive on the grassy plains of the Kalahari and you don’t check your vehicle every few minutes, you will soon lose your vehicle in an inferno! Prepare your vehicle for that kind of terrain and stop and check it regularily.
• Don’t just buy 4×4 accessories because they look nice. Beware of accessory salesman, they just want the sale. Ask someone/a dealer with lots of experience and buy accessories that are proven & tested, but most of all practical. A lot of 4×4 enthusiasts carry “nice to have’s”, stuff that they never use on a trip. Many injuries was caused by accessories that was not fitted correct or proper.
• We are in the process of making sure that all the 4×4 instructors and training institutions are qualified and accredited to provide standardized training for off-road drivers. In the very near future you will have to provide proof that you are a trained and qualified off-road driver, before you will be allowed to drive on any registered 4×4 route/destination. 
• 4×4 Training is primarily a course that will teach you the correct driving techniques, but the most important is for you to learn exactly how you specific vehicle work and what its dimensions are and how it performs in an off-road environment. The better you know your vehicle the better you will enjoy it, with no damage to the environment.

A motto/ slogan in the 4×4 world: “As slow as possible and as fast as necessary”

We would like to invite visitors to view this new section on the Arrive Alive road safety website:

• 4×4 Off-Road Driving Techniques & Safety

A plumber who took to the road with a blood-alcohol level of 0.35% after a party, was “lucky to be alive”, the Bishop Lavis Magistrate’s Court heard on Tuesday.

Prosecutor Colleen de Louw said Selwin Madden’s blood count was more than seven times the limit.

This was the worst drunken driving case she had encountered in her seven years as a prosecutor, De Louw said.

Madden, 45, of Bonteheuwel on the Cape Flats, was fined R8 000 or 400 days in prison. He pleaded guilty to driving with a blood-alcohol level above the 0,05% limit.

De Louw had called for a jail sentence, citing a previous drunk driving conviction in 1997.

However, Magistrate Paul Louw said he would give Madden “a second chance”. He warned him he would not get a third.

He also declined the prosecutor’s request to suspend the plumber’s driver’s license, saying Madden needed it to get to and from work.

Through his lawyer, Madden said he had had a lot to drink at the party, and afterwards had to drive his young son to hospital.

Half the fine was conditionally suspended for five years, leaving Madden with a R4 000 fine to pay, or face 200 days in prison.

- SAPA

Earlier this week we added a new section to the Arrive Alive website titled “Guide to safe driving on safari / driving in the nature reserve”. This has been done with the objective of providing our foreign visitors with helpful advice and suggestions to make their stay both safe and enjoyable!

A very important message from all of this is to ask questions! Do not be afraid to ask questions and gain advice – you are the customer – and the tour operator might not know what information you have about Africa and the wild!

You need to ask questions such as:

• What do I need to wear?
• What should I bring along?
• Do I need any medicinal supplies?
• How safe is it?
• Are there guidelines on medical treatment, medical response etc?
• Will we be guided by a qualified tour guide?
• Etc…

I would like to quote a small section of this content to illustrate some of the advice available to our foreign travellers:

“The nature enthusiast should always equip himself with a few necessities to make his game driver safer and more enjoyable. Remember that you are in nature, and nature provides a few unique challenges. Always keep these suggestions in mind:

•Enquire about the climate and weather conditions before you embark on a safari.
•Safari operators might be able to provide recommendations on the desired clothing during the specified period of your travel.
•If you do go for a walk, wear good shoes, socks, and long trousers. Chances are scorpions and spiders wouldn’t bother you anyway, but why take a chance?
•Listen to the weather reports but make provision for sudden changes.
•Even in mid-summer pack a light fleece or something to ward off the chill.
•Weather reports seldom consider the temperature at 5am. In winter pack like you’re going to somewhere snowy but make sure you can strip it off because by mid-morning temperatures are normally pleasantly warm.
•Always be prepared for the warm African sun with a hat, suntan lotion and enough water to prevent dehydration.
Some visitors have asked about the reason for the loaded rifles carried by guides. This is not a defense mechanism for an attack against the vehicle, but rather for the protection of the tracker and guide if they go off on foot to follow some prints into the bush.

The only real danger to the average visitor is getting hit on the head by an overhanging branch – so keep an eye on the road, the animals and vegetation / trees next to the road!”

We would like to invite all visitors to view the following sections:

• Guide to safe driving on safari / driving in the nature reserve
• Road Safety advice for Foreigners travelling in South Africa

A British police officer who killed a woman on a “hair-raising joyride” in a patrol car while taking a birthday card to his sister has been jailed for six-and-a-half years.

Malcolm Searles, 24, ran over Sandra Simpson, a 61-year-old grandmother, in south-east London in August 2008. He was driving a marked patrol car with its blue lights flashing and siren on.

In the hour before the crash, prosecutors said, he had delivered a card to his sister, visited a supermarket and picked up his father and uncle from a fancy-dress party to give them a ride in the patrol car.

He was clocked at 167km/h in a 60km/h zone and drove at high speed through housing estates where children were playing. He picked up his father and uncle from a fancy-dress party. After hitting the grandmother he falsely claimed he had been following a stolen car.

He had pleaded guilty at an earlier hearing to causing death by dangerous driving, dangerous driving and speeding.

Passing sentence, Judge Geoffrey Rivlin said Searles had taken part in “a hair-raising joyride” which led to an “appalling” tragedy.

“You abused your privileged position of driving a police car with its emergency signals operating for no other reason other than to provide a cover for racing along the streets,” he said.

Searles was also banned from driving for six years. He has quit London’s Metropolitan Police,

Mike Franklin of the Independent Police Complaints Commission said its investigation found that Searles “undertook a high-speed joyride in a police vehicle on residential streets for nothing more than personal errands”. – AFP

Nine people have been killed and one critically injured when two cars collided in Tafelkop near Motetema in Limpopo today. Police says a red Toyota Conquest travelling from Groblersdal to Nebo collided head-on with a green Opel Astra.

Spokesperson Mofati Makgopa says, “We do not yet know what caused the accident, but it might have been due to driving with bright lights on. All the five occupants of the Astra were burnt beyond recognition when it burst into flames after the collision.”

While the Conquest did not catch fire, the driver and three passengers were killed. All were adult men. “All their bodies were found lying around the wreckage as though they were trying to escape. A man in his mid-20s was the only survivor of the accident. He was rushed to Groblersdal Hospital in a critical condition,” says Makgopa.

The road was closed to traffic for about two hours as emergency workers cleaned up the scene. A case of culpable homicide has been opened.

SATI Chemicals plant blasts hurts 4

Meanwhile, four men were injured when a 23 000 litre oil tank exploded in Amanzimtoti today, KwaZulu-Natal emergency services said. The cause of the accident, at the SATI Chemicals plant in Beechgate road, is not yet known, Netcare 911 spokesperson Jeff Wicks said in a statement.

“The injured men were rushed to Netcare Kingsway hospital for further medical care. One man sustained burns to his face and legs and has been admitted for treatment. The others sustained inhalation burns and will likely be discharged later today.”

He said the explosion rocked surrounding factories and residential areas. Plumes of thick black smoke could be seen rising into the Amanzimtoti skyline. “Word from firefighters is that the smoke is not hazardous and there is no cause for alarm. The tank is still in flames and there are fears that other containers nearby could fall victim to the blaze if it is not brought under control.

“eThekwini Metro fire and emergency have called in resources from Durban central to assist.” – Sapa

A 35 year old horse groom is in a critical condition after he was attacked at the Kaarl Kloof country club near Howick in the Natal midlands tonight.

It unclear as to what exactly happened but it is believed that there was an argument between the victim and a fellow horse groom during the day. When Paramedics arrived they were faced with a horrific sight.

The patient had a large laceration across his throat and paramedics from Netcare 911 feverishly worked to stabilize the critically injured patient.They had to place a tube in his exposed windpipe to enable him to breath. He was then transported by ambulance to the Edendale hospital in Pietermaritzburg for emergency surgery.

Chris Botha

Netcare 911