First two days of ‘seven dangerous’ New Year holidays see 86 killed in road accidents

Thailand’s road accident death toll rose to 86 after the first two days of the country’s annual “seven dangerous days” New Year road-safety campaign, authorities said on Thursday.

Teerapat Kachamat, director-general of the Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation (DDPM), told a press conference at the DDPM headquarters that Wednesday, the second day of the seven-day monitoring period, saw 271 accidents, leaving 53 people dead and 262 injured.

Day two figures

According to the DDPM, speeding remained the leading cause of crashes on the second day (40.96%), followed by drink-driving (27.31%).

Motorcycles were involved in the largest share of accidents (74.44%).

Where crashes happened

Most accidents occurred on straight roads (82.29%), while highways accounted for the largest proportion of crash locations (39.48%), Teerapat said.

The highest number of accidents occurred between 6.01pm and 9.00pm (18.82%).

Worst-hit provinces on day two

Phetchaburi recorded the highest number of accidents on the second day (12).

Phayao and Surat Thani had the highest number of injuries (12 each).
Nakhon Ratchasima and Suphan Buri recorded the highest number of fatalities (four each).

Two-day totals

Over the first two days of the seven-day monitoring period, the accumulated number of accidents rose to 469, with 86 deaths reported.

Phetchaburi had the highest accumulated number of accidents (19), while Phuket recorded the highest accumulated number of injuries (20).

Teerapat said Bangkok, Nakhon Ratchasima, Pathum Thani, and Suphan Buri had the highest accumulated number of deaths, with five fatalities each.

He added that 36 provinces had reported no road accident deaths so far.

Safety focus for the remaining days

Authorities urged motorists to comply with speed limits, avoid drink-driving, and wear helmets and seatbelts, as the New Year travel period continues to bring heavy traffic on major routes nationwide.