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Rejoyce Sibanda, Chronicle Reporter

A TOTAL of 127 people died while 489 were injured from 1 998 road traffic accidents recorded throughout the country between December 15, 2022 and January 5, 2023.

The statistics marked a decrease of 25 deaths compared to last year during the same period when 102 accident-related deaths were recorded. Last year 478 people were injured in 1 914 accidents.

Statistics are compile annually for the festive season, which runs from December 15 to January 15.

National police spokesperson Assistant Commissioner Paul Nyathi said of the 1 998 accidents, 95 were serious ones.

Asst Comm Nyathi said most fatal accidents involved private cars.

“The festive period has revealed that drivers need to self-introspect and reconsider the way some are driving on the country’s roads. The bully and unruly driving conduct being shown by some drivers should stop to save lives on the roads,” he said.

Asst Comm Nyathi encouraged drivers to be observant and concentrate while on the steering wheel to curtail fatal road traffic accidents which have been recorded during the festive season.

He said in some instances pedestrians have been hit while standing at bus stops or walking beside the road.

“In one of the fatal road traffic accidents which occurred on December 18, 2022, an unknown motorist hit a man between 30 and 35 years along 12 Avenue in Bulawayo at around 2AM. The victim died on the spot and the motorist did not stop after the accident,” said Asst Comm Nyathi.

After such an accident, Asst Comm Nyathi advised motorists to stop and assist the injured.

If necessary, he said, motorists must report accidents to the police within 24 hours.

He said another accident occurred on Christmas day at around 7PM at the 300-kilometre peg along Bulawayo-Victoria Falls Road where a motorist driving a Toyota Hilux vehicle with three passengers lost control of the car and ran over seven pedestrians.

Asst Comm Nyathi said the vehicle also rammed into a stationary Honda fit vehicle which had six passengers on board where a total of three people died while 13 others were injured.

“Similarly on December 31 2022 at 10AM , three pedestrians were killed after they were hit by a bus that had veered off the road along Zaka-Nyika Road at the 15-kilometer peg,” he said.

Asst Comm Nyathi said the police will continue to deploy officers to curb road carnage and reckless driving conduct on the roads and it needs the cooperation of motorists for road safety to be realised in the country.

@ReeSibanda