Consequences of careless driving
Consequent to a dramatic rise in road accidents, moves are afoot to bring in new legislation to help minimise the number of accidents.
Stat i s t i c s reveal around 8 –10 persons die daily on our roads, while several others are injured.
Cameramen of ‘ The Sunday Times’ captured several such events.
In a freak accident at Dambulla, a car crashed into a house when the driver fell asleep at the wheel. Two women and a child who were injured and trapped in their room were rescued by villagers.
In another incident, also at Dambulla, a 50-year-old woman who was first hit by a motorbike and then thrown under the wheels of a speed- ing luxury vehicle succumbed to her injuries.
The victim’s sister and a wayside vendor were also seriously injured in the incident and admitted to the Dambulla hospit a l . T he drive r claimed he was blinded by the head- lights of an on-coming vehicle.
On 14 September at Puttalam, a van skidded off the road and crashed into a bridge. According to the police the driver who was thrown out of the vehicle sustained serious injuries and was admitted to the Puttalam hospital.
At Hambantota the Lunugamvehera police reported the death of a 16-year-old who died when the van he was travelling in skidded off the road and hit a tree.