Yesterday, a bus on the Amman-Jerash road slid out of control and collided with a water tank, killing 23 people and injuring 33 others. A few weeks ago, Hikmet Kaddoura’s tragic death in a hit-and-run inspired an awareness campaign initiated by his family and friends. That campaign was instantly carried forth by organizations that included City Hall, and even warranted a call from HM Queen Rania on a popular radio show. Complete with new roadside banners warning people to slow down and drive safely as well as reaching the highest ears in the land that lead to legislative debates on new and harsher traffic laws, the campaign, suffice to say, did arise public interest. That, in turn, arose my own interest in to the way western Ammanis perceive certain things, and perhaps even the value they place on a life.
So in the context of this latest tragedy which claimed the lives of 23 Jordanians heading to Jerash, it will be interesting to note the social reaction in Amman. I wonder if another demonstration will be held? Will their names be released? Will people rally in their memory? Will the Lower House of Parliament reconsider its rejection of the stiffer penalties law? Only time will tell.
In the meantime, my deepest heartfelt condolences to their families in this tragic time. From God we came, and to God we return.
What a tragic thing! May their souls rest in peace.
This is so sad, inna lillah .. wa inna elaihi raji3oon
My deepest condolences to the families of the victims!
You have a valid point Naseem. No life is worthy than the other–WE ARE ALL WORTHY whether we’re from the powerful West Amman, East Amman, Southern Jordan, Northern Jordan, or even any spot on the face of earth!
It is quite an exaggeration to think that people in West Amman will demonstrate, advocate, or rally for the implementation of traffic laws triggered by this particular accident that harvested the lives of some 20 people; personal involvement in the tragedy seems the only motivation for people to voice their dissatisfaction. In the meantime, I just hope a voice reaches those in charge about the necessity of reinforcing the-already-existing traffic laws in Jordan(it baffles me why they don’t see the necessity of reinforcing the law on their own?), in addition to imposing stricter penalties upon those violators!
May God have mercy on their souls and help their families through this time of distress. This is really sad and it has been happening for years in Jordan.
Everytime I go to Jordan when it’s winter I realize how dangerous the road conditions there become. Even though we have much colder weather here and snow and ice is always guaranteed, and rain drops every month of the year, the road conditions are actually better.
Because in Jordan, when winter comes, there is too much dirt on the road that hasn’t been washed away since the last year, and this makes the surface exceptionally slippery.
Also, I noticed that the tire grades that are used in Jordan are not ones with the best wet traction, because people have to go for more affordable choices, and those perform worse under wet driving conditions. This makes it even worse.
Jordan’s topography doesn’t help either, with steep grade roads that increase the chances of losing control.
It is really dangerous when it gets wet in Jordan, so please drive carefully for your own safety and the safety of others.
May God have mercy on the victims’ souls and be with their families. My deepest condolences to them.
The connection of Hikmet’s death, and these 23, was my first thought. Hoping that these, dying in such an awful and tragic way, would finally get it through the heads of crazy bus and truck drivers that their cargo is not bodies, but precious souls who God loves, and to drive accordingly.
I have yet to be in a bus on Jordan’s roads where I felt the driver was trustworthy adn driving safely.
May the God of all peace pour out comfort in grief.
the bus is by Trust Transport Co, it was heading from Aqaba to irbid, not Jerash.
A Call for boycotting this company, as it aint the 1st case!
http://nasimjo.blogspot.com/2008/01/stop-trusting-trust.html
Ya zalameh this company should be sued till kingdom come! they should be issue an apology to the families of the deceases, compensate them, and then close down for good! and this is not the first time this happens with this damn company, just a few months ago a similar accident also occurred on the Aqaba road killing many people, and leaving many injured, one of which was a close friend of mine who remains to this day at the hospital receiving treatment from massive head injuries that left him incapacitated!
Their buses are junk, their drivers are incompetent, their policy with customers is random is unprofessional, they always have incidents and break downs with their buses all the time!! its a travesty! I don’t know how people still use them! I don’t even know how they are still operating after all these incidents, I suspect If this was the U.S they’d be over their heads with lawsuits left and right! I’ve boycotted them a long time ago and swore never to use their buses again!
Gal “Trust” Gal! they should be called “incompetence” or “Failure” not trust!
La 7awla wala quwata illa billah. May God bless their souls and grant their families enough patience to overcome their loss. Allah yir7amhom o yir7amna jami3an.
May all their souls rest in peace…
My sincere condolences to the families of the lost souls and to all Jordanians.
What bothers me most is the way Police Force and Civil Defense Department was showing off yesterday on TV mentioning they did this and that, thanking so and so… This is really disgusting in a situation where they should be sorry and show their grief instead of that garbage…
Akh:) May their souls rest in peace and give their families strength and faith:)
I was on my way to Amman and the scene was horrific… I kept on praying for them…
It’s an ironic twist of a cruel fate that I was listening to the song ‘Salamah’ by Dalida when I read about the accident… and now I can’t stop thinking about how they were all coming back from a short holiday in Aqaba ….maybe even singing the song as my classmates and I would often do on our way back …
May their souls rest in eternal peace inshalla….
awartany .. my family was watching the same thing you talked about and they had the exact same reaction .. it was definitely inappropriate ..
Why do we always have to blame it on some corprate firm. I tried Trust bus once last year and it wasn’t a bad experience, other than the fact that some of the stupid passengers had a fight with the driver and the hostess because they didnt let them some inside the bus, and the trust employees were very responsible. We should blame ourselves for this reckless driving, for not caring about the people on the road or respecting any single driving law! We should also blame the government for having such poorly lid, poorly structured roads knowing that they take all these taxes without any return! so it’s not about a Bus company, because last year the 780 people who got killed on the road in Jordan were not all riding Trust tours buses.
Thanks
Ali
You guys saw nothing yet . I study at yarmouk University , this is my 4th year. I pass by this street nearly everyday, till now no week passed by me without seeing such a scene. Anyways it’s a real tragedy HOPE THEIR SOULs WILL REST IN PEACE.
bless you all 🙂
I took trust bus back from Aqaba a couple of days ago. I managed to record the bus driver using his mobile phone while driving
that was one of the most tragic accidents known to jordan in general, but guys lets face it, whether
it’s one person or 100 got killed in stupid faulty accident for me is the same. neither one actually deserves to die “May god have mercy on thier souls”, specially if the driver had a few too many the night before, and the fact that most of DRIVERS “buses or small” cars don’t have a MINUTE to check thier vehicles before taking off is just another proof of irresponsibility. folks we need to take an extra care before getting behind that steering. i’m telling you this after a brutal accident that i’ve had on my way from aqaba to amman back in 1996 i was 18 at the time and i almost got killed, luckily i ended up with several scars and stitches in different areas and just remember: It takes 8,460 bolts to assemble an automobile, and one nut to scatter it all over the road.
wish you all good living.
salaam