REAC regrets the negligent conduct of the tow truck operator who attended Cristóbal Soria on the A-381 and states that it is not representative of the roadside assistance sector
The former Sevilla F.C. club delegate, a regular pundit on the sports programme El Chiringuito de Jugones broadcast by MEGA, had an incident on 4 March, and described from his home the actions of a tow truck operator.
Madrid, 18 March 2020.- On 6 March, on the popular television programme El Chiringuito de Jugones, the former Sevilla C.F. club delegate and regular pundit on the show, Cristóbal Soria, recounted that he had had a mishap with his vehicle on the A-381, better known as the Ruta del Toro (which links Jerez with Los Barrios). The roadside assistance operation ended in unjustified and unnecessary physical harm to Mr Soria himself.
🙌 "From next year I will also celebrate my birthday on 4 March"
🙏 @cristobalsoria tells us about the biggest scare of his life on #ChiringuitoSoria pic.twitter.com/g16P7DgIbi
— El Chiringuito TV (@elchiringuitotv) March 6, 2020
In view of these shameful events, we at the Red de Empresas de Auxilio en Carretera (REAC), a nationwide organisation, wish to express our strongest rejection of the conduct of the operator who attended the well-known pundit. This conduct in no way corresponds to the safety protocol that governs the roadside assistance sector. Still less to the companies and professionals who are members of REAC. Safety in the road recovery sector is, in fact, one of our main commitments.
We invite all those who do not yet know us to visit any of our member companies to see first-hand how important risk prevention is to every REAC member: for both workers and the users and clients we assist on roads throughout the country.
Safety in the road recovery sector is our guiding principle
Precisely because one of REAC’s tasks is to ensure compliance with the safety protocol. Loading and unloading operations must be carried out by professional operators, and unqualified, untrained third parties must not be allowed to take part in these tasks. Moreover—as laid down in the technical instruction of our management and quality system—we must keep all people away from the work area, in line with what has been stated regarding safety distances.
In this respect, the operator’s conduct in Mr Soria’s incident was negligent and reckless, as he did not move him away from what the profession calls the “hot zone”, that is, place him somewhere safe. Nor did the operator use the necessary PPE (reflective, high-visibility clothing) that identifies the sector. This person displayed a total lack of professionalism, since he breached the mandatory safety procedures. The very procedures our professionals carry out day after day, using the necessary protective and safety equipment and resources.
We therefore regret the harm suffered by Mr Soria, and stress the need to eradicate bad practice within the road recovery sector. Actions of this kind, carried out by people who are not professionals in the trade, do great damage to our profession, which is characterised by its strong commitment and responsibility for safety: both of its workers and of road users.
At REAC we once again express our solidarity with Mr Soria. We reiterate our apologies on behalf of the sector, and take this opportunity to send a reassuring message to our clients and users. At REAC, our commitment to professional integrity and safety is total. It is extremely important to prevent incidents such as the one shown in the interview broadcast by El Chiringuito de Jugones, which can be seen here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ox_gMRc41Zw&feature=youtu.be.
That is what we work for every day.