More road accidents during festive season

[TamilNet, Sunday, 14 April 2002, 14:00 GMT]
During the Sinhala and Tamil New year festival season more than one thousand people, injured in road accidents and other violent incidents, have been admitted to the hospitals in the south of the island, medical sources said. The Police have set up several roadblocks in the Colombo town to minimise road accidents during festive season.

"Our main focus would be especially on drunken driving," said a Police official.

"501 persons have been admitted during the last two days with injuries at the Colombo National Hospital," its Director Dr.Anil Jayasinghe said Sunday.

Of them 139 were injured in motor accidents and 79 by acts of violence. 109 sustained injuries as a result of firecrackers. "This is an increase of 5 percent of previous years," said Dr. Jayasinghe.