The Port Authority of Trinidad and Tobago (PATT) has rejected reports alleging that a runaway truck nearly crushed a woman at the Port of Scarborough, describing those accounts as exaggerated and misleading.
In a statement issued on Tuesday, the Authority took issue with a report published on July 28th under the headline ‘Runaway truck almost crushes woman’, saying it presented unverified claims as fact and relied primarily on the account of an anonymous truck driver.
PATT said it was not contacted for comment before the story was published and was not given an opportunity to provide its account of the incident. It also said no independent source was cited to substantiate claims that a woman narrowly escaped death or that a fatality had been imminent.
According to the Authority, it conducted a review of the incident after the report was published, including reviewing security footage from multiple camera angles, interviewing employees on duty and examining the circumstances surrounding the movement of the vehicle.
It said the investigation found that the loaded truck had been stationary on the vessel’s ramp for several minutes before it began moving backwards because its parking brake had not been engaged.
“The footage further confirmed that the truck was stopped at a safe distance from the vehicles behind it. No person was struck or injured, and no surrounding vehicle was hit or damaged as a result of the truck moving backwards. There is therefore no evidential basis for the published claim that a woman was almost crushed, that someone “would have sure died,” or that a calamity was narrowly avoided.”
The Authority said it was concerned that what it described as serious public safety claims were published without verification, corroboration or an attempt to obtain an official response. It also argued that the report’s headline and opening language created the false impression that members of the public had been placed in immediate danger and fuelled speculation about the safety of the MV Golden Carrier, which began sea trials over the weekend.
PATT said it treats all operational and safety-related incidents seriously and will continue to investigate such matters carefully. It maintained that the findings of its investigation do not support the account presented in the published report.