National –
Thailand reported a total of 26 deaths, 255 injuries, and 253 road accidents on the last day of “seven dangerous days” of the Songkran holiday period, with its record on April 16th.
Unsit Sampuntharat, Deputy Minister of Interior, cited road accident statistics yesterday, April 17th, at a press conference on the seventh day of the Songkran holiday.
According to the reports, a total of 253 accidents, 26 deaths, and 255 injuries were recorded on Friday. The most common causes of road accidents were overspeeding, accountable for 35.18 percent of total accidents, followed by drunk driving with 22.13 percent.
The majority of 83.27 percent of accidents significantly involved motorcycles. Most of the accidents occurred on straight routes, accountable for 58.10 percent of total accidents. About 39.13 percent of them were recorded on national highways while 37.15 percent were on the community villages.
The most frequent time of accidents occurred between 16.01 – 20.00 hrs., accountable for 33.20 percent. The age of injuries and fatalities were mostly at 60 years old and older, accountable for 17.79 percent of all accidents reported on Friday.
The province with the highest accidents is Nakhon Sri Thammarat with 15 accidents. The highest number of injuries was also reported in Nakhon Sri Thammarat with 14 cases while the provinces with the highest fatalities were reported in Ubon Ratchathani with three deaths.
Accumulatively, a total of 277 deaths, 2,357 injuries, and 2,365 accidents were recorded during the seven-day Songkran period under the campaign “Happy Songkran, Safe driving, Stay safe from Covid-19”. The most accidents were reported in Nakhon Sri Thammarat at 106 times. The highest injuries were also recorded in Nakhon Sri Thammarat with 109 injuries while the highest fatalities were reported in Pathum Thani with 10 deaths.
Boontham Lertsukekasem, Director-General of the Department of Prevention and Mitigation (DDPM), concluded that road accident data during the Songkran holiday proved that driving under the influence and overspeeding were still the main causes of the accidents and most of the accidents involved motorcycles. However, the DDPM and the related departments will continue to work hard with provincial and local agencies to prevent fatalities, injuries, and the occurrence of road accidents in Thailand.
The Pattaya News notes this is a significant drop from prior Songkran festivals and even normal road traffic days. Law Enforcement agencies attributed the drop to checkpoints and road control measures, however, critics said the numbers were down due to Covid-19 control measures, fewer people traveling, entertainment venues being closed, and other similar items.
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