206 killed, 1,593 injured over first five of Songkran’s ‘7 dangerous days’
As of Monday, 206 people have been killed and 1,593 others injured in 1,564 road accidents nationwide during the first five days of the so-called “7 dangerous days” of Songkran.
These figures were announced by Public Health Minister Cholnan Srikaew at the Disaster Prevention and Mitigation Department on Tuesday.
The department set up a centre to monitor road accidents nationwide for seven days from April 11, when people head out of Bangkok for the Songkran holidays and later return to the capital.
Cholnan, who chaired the press conference called by the road safety centre, said on Monday alone, 39 people were killed and 314 injured in 301 road accidents nationwide.
Drunk driving was the biggest cause of accidents on Monday, he said, adding that most accidents occurred on straight roads and 38.54% took place on highways.
He added that the highest number of accidents took place between 4pm and 5pm, with accident victims – both dead and injured – being in the 20 to 29 age group.
The highest number of accidents and injuries on Monday took place in Nan with 14 and 16, respectively, while Chiang Rai had the highest death toll at 4.
As of Monday, Chiang Rai had seen the most road accidents (61), while Nan reported the most injuries (60) and Bangkok and Chiang Rai reported the highest fatalities of 13 each.
So far, only 17 out of 77 provinces have had no road fatalities.
Since many people are returning back to work in Bangkok or other key cities, the centre has assigned police, troops, Interior Ministry officials and civilian volunteers to monitor Bangkok-bound highways to minimise accidents.
Road checkpoints will be set up to check if motorists are showing signs of fatigue, and they will be told to rest to prevent accidents, Cholnan said.
