COVID Work Environment Requires Patience Says Cargo Truck Driver

Pravin Lal, a driver at XCLENT Transport PTE Limited says the job that he does, requires a lot of patience, hard work and continuous sacri­fice.

The 56-year-old cargo truck driver of Wailevu, Tiri in Labasa shared his heart touching experi­ence of travelling long distances, waiting for long periods and tak­ing up the responsibility of safely transporting goods to an expected location on time.

Mr Lal said especially during this pandemic, they had to make added sacrifices as they had to regularly travel the long Nabouwalu route to transport and then pick the loaded trucks arriving from Suva back to Labasa.

“I have to get the cargo truck ready for each day’s trip and at 6-7 pm in the afternoon, I make the long journey to my destination,” he said.

He said before the pandemic, they used to transport goods to Suva di­rectly and they had more time to rest in the boat and when in Suva.

Mr Lal mentioned they now had to follow more safety protocols as the goods coming in from Suva were first sanitised and cleaned before entering Nabouwalu.

“All this requires time, patience and the ability to maintain a cer­tain degree of alertness as acci­dents are highly prone in a con­gested environment”.

Mr Lal reiterated that after the goods arrived at different super­markets in Labasa, he then had to help in the unloading of these goods safely and ensure that the cargo truck was ready for the next trip.

In regards to being vaccinated, Mr Lal said: “I took my first jab of the AstraZeneca vaccine on Fri­day last week and am desperately waiting to receive my second dose on its scheduled date.”

The father-of-three-children said his whole family had to adjust to his work life as his shifts tend to change due to the changing work­ing environment.

“My wife usually prepares meals beforehand and always provides refreshment for my long trips,” he said.

Moreover, Mr Lal spoke highly of his employer and said he was fortunate to have a caring and un­derstanding employer, who always made sure to check on his driver’s well-being and safety even at any time of the night.

Mr Lal, has been in the transport goods delivery service for 10 years now.

“I encourage the public to appre­ciate our efforts and not criticise us, and I thank the Government for keeping the North safe with all its safety measures in place,” he add­ed.

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