Fifteen Thai youths, aged between 10-14 die every ten days from motorcycle accidents or about 700 deaths each year, says Dr Adisak Plitpolkarnpim, director of Ramathibodi Hospital’s Child Safety Promotion and Injury Prevention Research Centre (CSIP).
CSIP has produced a video clip showing motorcycle accidents involving Thai youngsters with an aim to promote safety among young Thais travelling on motorbikes. The clip, which was posted in the social media, has so far attracted many viewers.
Dr Adisak said that parents were partially responsible for the death and injury of young victims but he didn’t want to put all the blame on them. All those who see underage people riding on the pillions of motorcycles or who ride the bikes and do nothing about it are to blame, he added.
According to statistics, over 15,800 Thai youngsters are injured and about 700 killed each year from motorcycle accidents. The death toll will increase to over 30 per ten days during long vacations or festivals such as New Year and Songkran.
Dr Adisak noted that casualties from motorcycle accidents involving youngsters aged under 15 tend to increase every year, making Thailand the world’s number one with the highest death toll from accidents involving motorcycles.
