Cape Town trucker girl Zureena Samuels is ‘one with the road’
Born into a family with roots steeped in the logistics industry, Zureena Samuels, of Cape Town, said she tried different careers but believed the transport sector was her true calling, particularly, driving trucks.
Despite going against the grain to how societal norms typically depict truck drivers, Samuels, 30, believes that logistics is engrained in her DNA as her father and brothers are in the industry.
After trying her hand in other careers, like air hosting, which Samuels could fit into like a hand in a glove because of her charm and graceful looks, she decided to follow the path that had been set out before her.
Samuel's parents, Ishmail and Shahieda Samuel, have eight children - three boys and five girls - including her.
“I didn’t go to college after school because I was making bucks. I knew what I wanted and it was in the trucking industry. It's where my dad, my brothers and I have worked all our lives. It's like in us.
“Sure, I tried to follow other careers after school, like air hosting and I did courses in finance and even tried to pursue a career in the corporate world, but I kept getting called back here (trucking).
“The road is peaceful. It's meditative. It helps me clear my mind on a long drive, which is most of the time. The road is a part of me in many ways,” Samuels explained.
“You could say I am the 'girliest girl' out of all my sisters but somehow I still managed to end up in this industry.”
Samuels is also the mother to a five-year-old daughter, who she hopes to instil a spirit of hard work and courage. But she does not want her daughter to follow in her footsteps.
“I have taken her with me for a couple rides but honestly, it's not something I would want her to get into,” she said.
Samuels started driving at the age of 13, mainly because of her father’s influence and vision to have his children take the family business, Ish Rigging Solutions, into the future.
Legally, she has been driving since the age of 18. She first got her code 8 licence but shortly after, attained a code 14, which permitted her to drive the monstrous trucks, including one of her favourites, Fathima, a green Man truck which she has sentimental feelings towards.
“Look, I guess my father wanted his children to drive his trucks, which I understand because they are extremely expensive and sometimes drivers don’t always follow orders, so I understood where he came from. My older and younger brothers are also in the business, while my younger brother runs the company."
Ishmail Samuels said his daughter was a born leader and always “wants to be the mother of her siblings”. He said she was the only one of her sisters able to “drive a big rig”.
Ishmail said he gave all his children the opportunity to study but thought that one incident made his daughter change her mind about driving trucks.
“There were always trucks in the yard, so I would ask the children to move it back and forth in case we needed it. Then one day, a friend of mine needed a truck to be moved from a yard to another premises. All of my sons were busy on the day and I decided to ask Zureena. I told her, the uncle would pay her when she was done. I did not tell her how much.
“So Zureena got there and moved the truck to the new yard and when she was done, the guy paid her R3 000 cash. She did not know at the time that she could make so much money from doing this thing I always asked her to do. I think that R3 000 changed her life."
He added: “The people we do business with are also impressed by her. One day, there was a huge crane that needed to be moved and none of the drivers could do it but Zureena showed up and moved this huge truck in a small space. Everyone took videos of her that day,” he added.
Currently, Samuels works for South African retrailer Checkers, where she drives a Scania truck, a brand that she has fallen in love with over the years because of what she calls a “full package”.
But while a woman behind the wheel of a behemoth may be appealing to the average person, South Africa has grown increasingly dangerous over the years for truck drivers, with attacks, looting and arson becoming more common.
But Samuels’ bravery is unshakable.
“Hijackings and an accident are my two biggest fears as a driver, especially because I am a woman and it's often that I drive alone. But it's my job, so I just got used to working around these safety concerns.
“I always pray before a trip and take extra precautions like if I’m sleeping over at a stop, I’d double check and make sure my truck is secure and that I’m secured. The best thing for me to do is just keep going,” Samuels said.
When she gets down from the driver's seat in the future, Zureena said she wanted to help others achieve their trucking dreams one day by becoming a driving instructor for her favourite company, Scania.
“I definitely want my own transport company one day but mostly, I want to train drivers, especially women, so they know it's okay to work in the industry and not feel threatened just because it's seen as a man’s job,” Samuels explained.
The POST