adminPamela Shumba Senior Reporter
THE Independence and Easter holidays road accident death toll had yesterday risen to 25 from 11 on Friday, amid calls on motorists to be more cautious on the roads.
National police spokesperson, Chief Superintendent Paul Nyathi yesterday said most of the accidents were caused by negligence by motorists.
He said 25 people had died from the 194 road accidents that occurred since the beginning of the holidays on Thursday.
“We have recorded 25 deaths compared to the 10 during the same period last year, while 203 people have been injured compared to 88 last year. A total of 194 accidents have also been recorded compared to 176 in 2013,” said Chief Supt Nyathi.
He said police had impounded 218 vehicles for various defects and issued a total of 5,459 tickets to offending motorists.
He said Manicaland province had recorded eight deaths, the highest in the country, while Matabeleland North recorded four.
Midlands and Mashonaland Central provinces had recorded three deaths each while Mashonaland East had recorded two.
Bulawayo and Masvingo provinces had recorded one death each while Matabeleland South province has no fatalities recorded.
Chief Supt Nyathi warned motorists against speeding, saying it was the main reason for the increase in the road carnage.
He also appealed to motorists to give due consideration to pedestrians and other motorists to avoid unecessary loss of life.
“According to our assessment, most of the accidents have been caused by negligence on the part of drivers, which includes speeding, failure to give way and misjudgement.
“I would like to encourage motorists to be observant, avoid speeding and respect other road users and pedestrians. We are also warning all people who are pirating that they are doing so illegally and will be arrested. We will not hesitate to impound all vehicles that are found pirating,” said Chief Supt Nyathi.
Online Reporter