Nationwide Songkran festival celebration has claimed 259 deaths and 2,378 injuries in a total of 2,216 road mishaps that happened within four days from April 11-14.
National Council for Peace and Order’s (NCPO) civil affairs spokesman Lt Gen Thirawat Boonyawat disclosed at a press conference jointly taken part by the Department of Public Disasters Prevention and Mitigation that yesterday alone, 78 were killed and 601 injured in the road mishaps that were caused mostly by drink driving.
Only yesterday a total of 555 road accidents occurred, he said.
In all, he said, a total of 259 people have died and 2,378 others injured in four days of the Songkran festival celebration from April 11-14.
Chiang Mai recorded the highest road mishaps with 100 cases and highest injuries of 104 people in four days, while Bangkok taking the lead in road fatalities with 14 deaths.
Major causes of road mishaps were drunk driving and speeding, and motorcycle is the vehicle that engaged in most fatal accidents.
NCPO deputy spokesman Col Sirichan Ngathong, meanwhile, said 1,492 vehicles impounded at road-safety checkpoints across the country yesterday as part of the government’s no drink-driving campaign during the Songkran festival.
She said there were 41,797 traffic violations involving public vehicles and personal cars yesterday.
Authorities seized 571 driving licenses, impounded 313 cars and public vehicles and arrested 9,323 people for drunk driving yesterday, she said.
Between April 9 and 14, a total of 3,057 vehicles, including 2,361 motorcycles and 696 cars, have been impounded.
A total of 14,880 driving licenses were seized, 32,400 motorcyclists and 19,916 drivers of public vehicles and private cars arrested during this period, she added.
