BANGKOK, Jan 2 — As many as 49 per cent of road accidents on New Year’s Day resulted from drunken driving, followed by 24 per cent due to speeding, Public Health Minister Dr Rajata Rajatanavin said today.
Dr Rajata said driving while under the influence of alcohol remained the major reason for road accidents in Thailand in the past three days.
He said the ministry ordered provincial public health offices to continue campaigns urging people to avoid driving after drinking alcohol.
Motorists should always wear safety belts while motorcyclists should wear helmets as most accidents on the New Year’s Day every year involved motorcycles.
So far 20 victims of road accidents were aged below 20 with four dying from drunk driving, he said.
During the first three days of the seven-day road accident monitoring period for the New Year holidays, rescue officials were able to reach the scene of accidents within the required 10 minutes and sent 4,510 injured victims to hospitals for treatment, Dr Rajata added.
He said that during the past three days, 190 persons died while 1,782 were injured in 1,737 road accidents nationwide.
