Nearly 940 people have died in 891 road traffic accidents from January 1, 2020 to June 15, 2020 but the number of accidents has reduced from the previous years, police media said.
A total of 2278 others were seriously injured and 3573 have suffered minor injuries in road traffic accidents during the same period.
“Most of these accidents were caused by drunk drivers,” Deputy Inspector General (DIG) Traffic Control and Road Safety Sudath Nagahamulla told Counter Point.
Accordingly, total of 14,942 people have been arrested for driving under the influence of alcohol, and 15,778 others have been charged for speeding so far.
“We have deployed more officers particularly during the night to especially catch the drunk drivers who cause most of these accidents,” DIG Nagahamulla said.
If caught, drunk drivers must pay a fine of Rs. 25,000 and may also face a three month prison sentence.
They will also have their driving license suspended for six months to a year
The most recent accident involving drunk driving resulted in the death of a young police officer.
Meanwhile, Chief Nurse of the National Hospital Pushpa Ramyani de Zoysa said the number of hospital admission as a result of road traffic accidents have decreased. “Usually we see about 7000 admissions a month,” she added.
