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Not enough road gravel, says woman Laura Busch Northern News Services Published Wednesday, February 15, 2012
Kelly Lush was following her husband at about 8:15 a.m. along Old Airport Road near the Co-Op grocery store when her husband's truck started sliding sideways while taking the sharp turn in the road. "He's lived here for 30 years, he knows that turn," said Lush. "I don't know what happened." Donald Lush tried to correct the skid, but ended up heading straight into the guardrail - or would have, if it had not been covered with snow. "If the guardrail had been exposed, he would have hit it and bounced off," said Kelly. "But because there's so much snow buildup that's never cleared from there, it actually acted like a ramp and launched his truck over." Mayor Gord Van Tighem said the corner would have had crushed granite spread on it before 8:15 a.m. "Most people really slow down for that corner but we will still get crush on it every day and as required," he told Yellowknifer. "If somebody's going to go over a guardrail, normally that would indicate excessive speed. I know that when I go around that corner, I'm crawling." The mild weather of late does make for more slippery road conditions and makes city roads more difficult to maintain, said Van Tighem. "It's interesting when you get this kind of mild weather here," he said. "One of the things that happens is that moisture seems to come out of the ground and you get a slick surface. So, there's extra care taken during mild weather. If it gets really cold and stays that way, it's much easier to maintain." Lush is also upset about the behaviour of the municipal enforcement officer who attended the accident. She said that she was standing on the side of the road with her husband and two young children, ages two and four, when a bylaw officer first appeared. Without asking if everyone was okay, he demanded to know who was driving "and went right to, 'well, here's what I'm going to do to get you in trouble," said Lush. "And my husband was pretty shook up." The bylaw officer, who could not be reached for comment, spent his time at the scene photographing damage done to the guardrail and told Donald that he would be expected to pay about $1,000 to repair the piece of city property. "What's his job as bylaw?" asked Lush. "What's more important, public safety of public property?" There was about $1,800 worth of damage done to the truck because of the way the front tire landed on top of the guardrail, said Lush. Damage was done to the tie rods and the shaft that holds the tie rods to the tire. Had the rail done it's job, there shouldn't have been more than a dented bumper, she said. In an e-mailed response to a complain letter sent by Lush, Dennis Kefalas, director of Public Works and Engineering for the city, said that the streets are sanded every morning beginning at 3 a.m., and so road conditions can't be the cause of the accident. Regarding the behaviour of the bylaw officer, Kefalas stated he had reviewed the incident and the officer "acted in an appropriate manner." He also implied that Lush and her husband must have misheard or misinterpreted the officer. The mayor also defends the officer and reiterated that the roads should have already been treated at least once before the time of the incident. "The crush goes on daily, and as required," said Van Tighem. "The guardrail will stop anybody that's traveling normally, and if anyone has a concern they should contact somebody at the city because then we can deal with it directly." Lush is not accepting this response from the city, and plans to follow up by filing a formal complaint concerning the municipal enforcement officer and ultimately is looking for the city to accept responsibility for the damage to the family's truck. "I'm hoping to go after them (the city) to have them pay for the damages to the truck," said Lush. Ultimately, her main concern is to clear the snow from the guardrail and focus on making the turn safer, said Lush, adding that there are pictures to prove that there was no sand on the road at the time of the accident. "Why can't we fix this problem before someone gets themselves killed on that turn?" she asked.
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