A project to educate communities along major highways on the dangers associated with stealing petroleum products from accident tankers has been launched. Dubbed "Total Caravan for Safety," the project aims at using effective communication tool such as drama and other strategic media in local languages to bring about attitudinal change among the people. It is to help discourage communities along major trunk roads from rushing to scenes of accidents involving fuel tankers and siphoning fuel from them, which in the event of a fire out-break, may claim many lives. It is also to educate target communities on how to reduce domestic accident due to poor storage and use of hydrocarbons in local communities. Communities along Nsawam/Suhum stretch of the Accra/Kumasi Highway, Accra/Aflao, Accra/Takoradi and Kumasi/Tamale highways will be covered under the programme. Total Petroleum Ghana Limited (TPGL), Ministries of Energy and Transport, the Ghana National Fire Service, National Road Safety Commission, National Disaster Management Organization, Motor Traffic and Transport Unit and the Ghana Police Service are sponsoring the programme. In an address at the launch at Asuboi in the Suhum-Kraboa-Coalter District of the Eastern Region, the Managing Director of TPGL, Mr. Jonathan Molapo, said Total chose to launch the project at Asuboi because of the spate of accidents along the Nsawam/Suhum stretch of the Accra/Kumasi Highway, which had continued to claim many lives. Mr Molapo said since road traffic accidents are on the increase, the Total Caravan Safety Project aimed to ensure the safety of lives and property on the roads. "Our leadership in a highly competitive industry of over 50 Oil Marketing companies placed a greater responsibility on Total to deliver not only top notch service to its customers but also to ensure that we are socially responsible to all manner of stakeholders in our communities," he said. Mr Molapo said the highly volatile nature of products the company transported across the length and breadth of the country made it imperative to take the necessary measures to ensure safety for all. He said apart from the project, the TPGL had instituted several safety measures including the Programme for Improvement on Overseas Road Transport (PATROM) and Road Safety Limited, a school meant to train its drivers and inspect and maintain its trucks, which he said were yielding encouraging results. Source: GNA