Thailand: More than 25,000 injured, Songkran water festival becomes '7 dangerous days'
According to statistics from the Thai Ministry of Health on April 17, a total of 25,516 people injured in traffic accidents were treated at public hospitals across the country during the Songkran water festival - the Buddhist New Year celebration in the land of the Golden Temple.
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| Elephants spray water at tourists during an event held to celebrate the Songkran festival in Ayutthaya province, Thailand on April 11. (Photo: THX/TTXVN) |
Thailand's Deputy Minister of Public Health Pranom Khamthiang said driving after consuming alcoholic beverages is the main cause of serious accidents, accounting for 30% of accidents.
As people begin to return home from the holidays, reckless driving and fatigued driving will increase the risk of collisions. By vehicle, accidents involving motorbikes were the most common, accounting for 80.88%, followed by trucks at 10.08%.
Anticipating this situation, medical facilities in Thailand have deployed on-call teams, with emergency rooms, operating rooms, blood banks and wards operating continuously during the Songkran festival.
Many local medical centers have been staffed with extra staff. In the event of an accident, people are urged to contact the centers for prompt medical assistance.
According to Thai Transport Minister Arkhom Termpittayapaisit, from April 11 to 17, the first 6 days of the total "7 dangerous days" of the Songkran New Year celebration witnessed 397 deaths and 3,271 injuries in 3,104 traffic accidents nationwide, an increase of 29.74% compared to last year./.
According to Vietnam+
