Front PageNational News

11 killed over Christmas

Police have reported that 11 people died in road accidents during the Christmas period spanning from midnight on Christmas Eve to midnight December 28.

In an interview on Tuesday, National Police spokesperson Nicholas Gondwa said the 11 were killed in 10 fatal accidents registered nationwide.mec-accident

He said besides the 10 fatal accidents—where death is recorded—the remaining four were serious road accidents where four people sustained injuries.

Gondwa said the 14 road accidents registered during this year’s Christmas break show an increase of 56 percent compared to the nine road accidents that were recorded during 2014 Christmas break.

He said: “The reason why there are more road accidents registered [this year] is because the break had quite more days compared to last year. The resumption of Boxing Day, December 26, which fell on a Saturday this year as a Public Holiday means that the recording went all the way to Monday, December 28, midnight.”

The rise comes against the background of increased police presence on the roads where officers check adherence to speed limits, authenticity of certificates of fitness, insurance and driver’s permits.

In terms of regional breakdown, Gondwa said out of the 14 recorded road accidents, nine took place in the Central Region where six people were killed while three happened in the Eastern Region where three people died. The Northern Region registered two accidents and two deaths whereas the Southern Region reported neither a fatal nor a serious accident.road-accident

However, on Tuesday, The Nation reported that former Cabinet minister Clement Khembo sustained injuries and was admitted to Blantyre Adventist Hospital (BAH) after the vehicle he was driving overturned along the Robert Mugabe Highway linking Blantyre and Mulanje through Chiradzulu.

Police were yet to get a record of the accident which, according to Khembo’s wife, Mary, happened on Sunday in Blantyre.

Police have attributed the causes of the accidents to two factors: over-speeding and driving under the influence of alcohol.

In terms of crime incidents, Gondwa said one case of murder was recorded nationwide. It was reported in Blantyre’s Bangwe Township in the Southern Region.

He said during the same period last year, no murder case was reported.

“Apart from those cases, no rape or defilement was recorded; no serious breaking was recorded; no serious robbery was recorded; and no theft of motor vehicle was recorded during this period of time,” he said.

He attributed this improvement to the increased visibility of police officers during the period as well as the public’s alertness and their (the public) heeding to advices offered by the police on how to look after their properties and houses during the period.

Gondwa said all in all, the figures registered mean the police are winding the year on a high note in as far as crime management is concerned because just at the beginning of the year they were hit hard with crime influx and they managed to pick themselves over as the year was proceeding.

In a summary of 2015 during a Christmas and New Year’s party for senior police officers from the Southern Region on Saturday, Senior Deputy Commissioner of Police Merlne Yolamu, who is based at National Police Headquarters in Lilongwe and represented the Inspector General of Police Lexten Kachama at the event, said road accidents increased by four percent.

He said 8 195 accidents were registered in 2015 compared to 7 860 in 2014.

Yolamu added: “Traffic management has been an area of concern and this can be attributed to increased numbers of vehicles on our roads coupled with drive and drink cases, over-speeding and use of unroadworthy vehicles.”

Related Articles

Back to top button