Foundation describes toll of 110 deaths as'unbelievable'
Road accidents have claimed 110 lives and injured 1,260 across the country during the first three days of the 10-day Songkran holiday, the Road Safety Centre reported yesterday.
An anti-drunk-driving group called the number of casualties "unbelievable" and predicted the toll would rise, as the road-safety campaign has been overshadowed by the recent political turmoil.
The number of accidents in the first three days was 1,130, 4.4-per-cent down on last year's 1,182, said Deputy Interior Minister Sermsak Pongpanit, in his capacity as the centre's deputy director.
Topping the list of fatalities by province is Songkhla, with eight. In second place is Chiang Mai, with five, followed by Chanthaburi, Chachoengsao, Nakhon Pathom and Phichit, each of which have four, Sermsak said.
On Sunday alone, the third day of the holiday, there were 399 road accidents, in which 42 people were killed and 450 injured.
Sermsak said the accidents resulted mainly from drunk driving and speeding at 34.84 and 20.55 per cent, respectively. About 82 per cent of the accidents involved motorcycles, he said.
In the first three days, police officers stopped 679,735 vehicles at checkpoints around the country and 27,270 motorists received charges.
Most of these involved riding a motorcycle without a helmet, failing to present a driving licence and reckless motorbike riding.
Surasit Silpangam, manager of the Don't Drive Drunk Foundation, said that he was astonished by the "unbelievable" number of casualties that had occurred, when compared to the New Year holiday.
He suggested the increase over Songkran might be because the long holiday caused people to drink heavily and many factories closed early and held parties for workers before they left for their home provinces.
He also said the political turmoil had overshadowed the road-safety campaign, while the New Year campaign had received more attention and was spearheaded by the prime minister.
Surasit warned the death toll would rise from Thursday as people take to the streets to play water games. He said road accidents leading to deaths and injuries would rise because people, especially youngsters, often get drunk before playing.
The games were also becoming increasingly violent, he said, and the government should set aside zones where people could play safely.
He said the number of accidents could be reduced if the police set up checkpoints to watch for drunk drivers and overloaded pickup trucks.
Meanwhile, Acting Prime Minister Chidchai Vanasatidya said he was not worried about the accident toll as the figures were still under control and many preventive measures had been implemented this Songkran.
He urged people who had been drinking not to drive, as drunk
driving was the main cause of accidents.
He said the authorities had prohibited the sale of alcohol at roadside stalls and gas stations.
A woman was killed and four people were injured yesterday morning when the driver of a bus dozed off and slammed the vehicle into an electricity pole in Nakhon Ratchasima's Pak Chong district.
The bus was travelling from Udon Thani to Chiang Mai with about 20 passengers onboard.
Udon Thani native Siriwimol Thongyos, 26, died in hospital. Driver Sameur Pudpong, 55, claimed he had been driving for two days without sleep.