Road accident investigation course for RBPF officers

A TWO-WEEK course began yesterday for police officers that is expected to provide them expertise in the field of road accident investigation and aid in lowering the rate of accidents on Brunei roads.

Speaking at the launch of the Road Crash Investigation course, Acting Senior Assistant Commissioner Hj Majid Hj Damit, acting director of Administration at the Royal Brunei Police Force said "investigation of road accidents can help in answering the questions 'how and why' those accidents happened".

SAC Hj Majid also highlighted the high number of road accidents in Brunei, which had risen in 2009 compared to 2008.

"In 2009, the number of road accidents went up 12.07 per cent, whereby there were 3,110 cases reported compared to 2,775 in 2008," he said.

The acting director also pointed out that there were 38 fatalities last year, with 29 deaths from road accidents recorded in 2008.

"This is a rise of 31.03 per cent," said SAC Hj Majid.

According to the latest update from the Investigation and Traffic Control Unit of the Royal Brunei Police Force, there were four fatalities in 2010 as of yesterday.

"With this comprehensive course, participants will be able to develop skills in securing and preserving the scene of the accident; initial assessment of the scene; analyse the velocity of the vehicle and human reaction times; identifying important factors as the cause of the accidents," said SAC Hj Majid.

He added that the course will provide the participants the skills to identify the causes of accidents from a technical viewpoint, derived from road accident analysis.

"The course we are doing is an introduction to road crash investigation, it is the cornerstone of any other investigation in relation to a crash," said John Ruller, collision analyst.

He and fellow specialist Andrew Mitto from Australia's Road Accident Investigation Service are conducting the training for 20 officers who are involved in road accident investigations from the Royal Brunei Police Force.

Ruller added that "what you do at this level will affect anything else, it is one of the most important parts of crash investigation training".

Those undergoing the special two-week course, will also be viewing crash vehicles and measuring the tyre marks at mock scenes.

The Brunei Times