Motor accidents kill 111

A police report says motor accidents claimed the lives of 111 persons, injured 851 victims and damaged 1,093 vehicles in Liberia out of a total of 790 cases recorded from January to 12 July this year. Vehicle occupants recorded the highest number of death toll during the said period.

The report covered six of Liberia’s 15 counties including Montserrado, Margibi, Grand Bassa, Bomi, River Gee, Grand Gedeh and Bong. The accident statistics obtained from the office of Deputy Police Spokesman Mr. Lewis Norman showed that self – accident dominated the accidents chart, followed by hit and run incidents in which majority of the vehicles appeared to have no registration numbers.

Police authorities have cited exceeding required speed limit by operators, reckless driving, lack of basic knowledge in road safety education for drivers and overloading of vehicles as some of the causes for such accidents.

The latest report has prompted the Liberia National Police or LNP’s Traffic Section to strongly recommend a nationwide driver education workshop for drivers to authorities. “We further recommend that authorities of the Public Safety Division of the Liberia National Police should collaborate and coordinate with the requisite stakeholders such as Ministry of Transport; various transport unions of Liberia, Government of Liberia and partner GIZ so as to arrive at amicable solution to the alarming death rate as a result of motor accident,” the report said.

In a detail analysis, the report reveals that 15 persons died in January, six of whom were vehicle operators, four occupants and four pedestrian. Vehicle occupants suffered the highest number of deaths during the period under review, but operators went a little higher than the number of pedestrians that were killed.

The number of casualties in all dropped in February when accidents killed four pedestrians, two occupants and one operator. It however rose in March with 13 casualties and went further to 16 casualties in April, with occupants, operators and pedestrians involved as well.

The death toll stood around 15 in May and 16 in June; but it dropped at 13 from 1 July to 12 July, also involving occupants, pedestrians and operators.

By Winston W. Parley-Edited Othello B. Garblah