Hidden dangers of funeral vehicles

Yen Bai - Most hearses are old and dilapidated, many owners do not have them inspected... "The owners never care, the traffic police never wave down a hearse to check, so why should they be afraid?". With all these reasons, the hidden dangers from hearses will not be small.

Nowadays, the use of a coffin carrier or a body cart to carry the body to the burial site only occurs in mountainous, remote, isolated areas or funerals near cemeteries. Most of the remaining funerals use cars to transport the coffin; in particular, an increasing number of families choose cremation for neatness and environmental hygiene.

Yen Bai province does not have cremation services, so the funeral home must transport the deceased's body to Phu Ninh - Phu Tho, Vinh Hang - Vinh Phuc or Hoan Vu - Hanoi by car. Therefore, dozens of individuals and many funeral service establishments have invested in cars to transport coffins. Where there is demand, there will be supply, that is the law! However, most of the hearses are old and dilapidated, and many owners do not have their vehicles inspected... The hidden dangers from hearses are not small.

According to observations, the majority of funeral service cars are old Hyundai County cars, almost out of date, purchased by the owners to convert the partition between the driver's compartment and the passenger compartment, remove the two middle rows of seats and create two rear doors. Many funeral service cars are old, rusty, use the wrong type of lock (using a regular door latch); in particular, many cars are not registered for technical safety and environmental protection.

Mr. M, a member of a funeral service facility in Yen Bai city, said: "What's the point of transporting the dead? Buying an old car that's about to expire and converting it will have low costs and quick depreciation."

After asking the funeral service driver Nguyen Van Quang: "My car is not registered or inspected, sir?", he winked and replied: "The homeowner never cares, the traffic police never wave down the hearse to check, so why should we be afraid?".

Talking to Mr. Tran Manh Thang, owner of an auto garage in Nguyen Phuc ward, Yen Bai city about this issue, he said: "Vehicle inspection is an important requirement to assess the technical safety quality of the vehicle; failure to inspect on time and on schedule will pose many potential risks. In addition to not ensuring technical safety according to the provisions of the Road Traffic Law, hearses also pose many other dangers such as: the vehicle is too old and dilapidated, with many modified details such as lights and electricity; especially, during the funeral service, the bereaved family often burns incense, candles, etc. The source of fire can break out at any time, especially when the vehicle shakes violently, speeds up, brakes suddenly and there are collisions and accidents."

The warnings of experts are well-founded. According to records, there have been countless cases of hearse fires or hearses causing particularly serious traffic accidents across the country. Cases such as at the end of 2018, a hearse was moving on National Highway 1, passing through Tinh Gia district, Thanh Hoa province, when it suddenly caught fire. The authorities arrived in time, but the fire was so big that it took about 20 minutes to control the fire.

On March 17, 2021, the car with license plate 43B-017.12 used to transport coffins for funeral services, driven by driver Nguyen Hoang H, caught fire at the intersection of Dien Bien Phu - Nguyen Duc Trung, Da Nang city.

According to the observations of people present at the scene, the fire broke out from under the car, spread to the coffin compartment and then engulfed the entire car. Or on March 29, 2017, a hearse was traveling on Vo Chi Cong Street, Hanoi when it suddenly lost control and crashed into 4 cars and 2 motorbikes... And there are countless cases of hearse fires and hearse accidents that have been reported by the media over the years. This is truly a warning bell for authorities and people every time there is a funeral at home.

Discussing this issue, Mr. Le Truong - Director of Yen Bai Registration Center said: "Sometimes there are still funeral cars coming to our Center for inspection, of course, they can go to other units for inspection because the law allows it. According to regulations, passenger cars (including hearses as we often see are about to expire, they must be inspected once every 3 months".

When we showed Mr. Le Truong a photo of the hearse with license plate 29B-506.67, Mr. Truong accessed the vehicle registration information management system and quickly informed: The car with license plate 29B-506.67, first registered on June 9, 2004, meaning it has 1 year left until its expiration date, has inspection number 0247026. This car has not been inspected for a long time - Mr. Le Truong affirmed.

It can be said that funeral services have helped many bereaved families conveniently organize funerals. However, good services must first of all be safe services, do not disregard danger just for profit. Hearses are inherently low-cost investments but charge high service fees, and do not have to pay road tolls compared to passenger transport services by car, and now they also avoid vehicle inspection, disregarding safety, which is very difficult to accept. Moreover, because "there is no traffic police to stop and handle", drivers often speed and overtake recklessly.

The law must be enforced fairly and strictly. Therefore, it is necessary for the traffic police to increase propaganda, remind and strictly handle violations of traffic safety and order, including funeral cars.

Le Xuan Truong

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