Video footage has captured the moment bulky furniture fell from a moving truck on to a major Fife road, landing in front of a nearby car.
The clip shows an armchair and a couch piled on the back of a vehicle travelling along Standing Stane Road.
The precariously balanced furniture, which does not appear to be strapped in, then tumbles into the road behind the vehicle and into oncoming traffic.
The person filming the video can be heard saying: “Oh, there’s the chair gone.”
The car behind the truck managed to keep enough distance to avoid being hit by the falling couches.
‘Idiocy of driving’
Councillors for the area say they have been left shocked by the footage, which is understood to have been filmed this week.
The Driver Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA), meanwhile, has appealed for information to help trace the culprit.
Kirkcaldy East Councillor Ian Cameron said: “The Standing Stane Road has caused many deaths and injuries over the years and caution is always required on this road, which has crossroads, access roads and hidden dips.
“The idiocy of driving such an unsecured load is only matched with the danger that it poses to other road users.
“The video should reveal the owner of the vehicle and the drivers and when they are found the full force of the law should be thrown at them — I would rip up their driving license on the spot.
“When recycling centres were limiting access, some vans would shed their load by simply opening the back doors and pushing building materials on to the street.
“Others turned dumping into a nocturnal business. Maybe this behaviour is a hangover from that mentality. It needs to stop.”
‘Lucky nobody was hurt’
Councillor Richard Watt for Kirkcaldy East said: “It’s disappointing to see this sort of carelessness.
“This is a case where doing the safe thing would have been easier, overall.
“We’re all lucky that in this case nobody was hurt and the passengers in the car behind had a sense of humour about the whole thing.
“In future I hope we don’t see this sort of behaviour but it serves as a friendly reminder to check loads are secured before moving them.”
DVSA launch investigation
A spokesperson for the DVSA urged locals with any information on the driver to get in touch to help with its investigation.
He said: “Every driver has a responsibility to safely secure their load before setting off for a journey. Failing to do so can have devastating and fatal consequences.
“We do not tolerate this behaviour, that endangers Fife road users.
“If anyone has any information we would encourage you to get in touch so we can investigate and help keep Scottish roads safe.”
Police Scotland said the incident has not been reported to them.
