News
Accidents and fights beat fireworks in New Year injury toll
At least 700 persons sought treatment at the Colombo National Hospital for accident-related injuries during the New Year season, a 10 per cent increase from last year, the hospital’s director, Dr. Anil Jasinghe said.
Dr. Anil Jasinghe
More than 280 of them had to be hospitalised.
Most injuries were due to traffic accidents, Dr. Jasinghe said, a toll that was 40 per cent higher than last year.
“Road infrastructure has developed, fuel prices are reduced and there are too many vehicles in use. Because of all these reasons mobility of people has increased. We always meet victims of drivers who use good roads badly,” he said.
He urged traffic police to take more action to reduce accidents.
Deputy Inspector-General of Traffic, Amarasiri Senaratne, said 38 deaths occurred during April 11-15; last year there were 63 deaths.
Balakrishna Murugamma’s 13 year-old son was knocked down by a three wheeler
He said although the number of fatalities had decreased there were some tragic accidents including the deaths of three small children who had fallen out of three-wheelers.
DIG Senaratne said police had arrested more than 1300 drunken drivers from April 11-17.
One New Year victim recuperating in hospital is 20-year-old Chandana Abeykoon from Alawwa, an engineer, who met with an accident on Thursday (April 16) and had to have his right leg amputated. His uncle, Sajith Seneviratne, said Mr. Abeykoon had been knocked off his motorcycle by a speeding van.
A patient transferred from Jaffna Hospital to Colombo, Dharma Kulasingham Raviraj, 28, had to have his left leg amputated, His father, Dharma Kulasingham, explained sadly that his son had been knocked down by a lorry.
A 65-year-old staff member of a hotel, Kariyawasam Bandegoda Gunasena, was lying unconscious in stretcher with a head injury, a leg fractured in three places and his hand fractured in two places.
Dharma Kulasingham Raviraj, 28, had to have his left leg amputated
He had been assaulted by a drunken guest at the hotel.
Chandana Abeykoon had to have his right leg amputated
The hotel manager said the guest had been causing trouble around midnight on New Year’s Day and Mr. Gunasena had castigated him. The guest had then attacked Mr. Gunasena with a rock.
Balakrishna Murugamma, a 50-year-old mother living near Mahawatta, Colombo, said her 13-year-old son, Krinston Mogan, had been knocked down by a three-wheeler when he went to see a bicycle race and had to undergo surgery for a fractured leg.
“He didn’t wait till we come out from our house. He ran out. It is wrong but trishaw drivers must also know to slow down especially in crowded places,” she said.
Outstation hospitals also reported an increasing number of accident-related cases during the New Year period.
The director of the Anuradhapura hospital, Dr. W. Athapattu, said 230 patients came to the Accident Ward for treatment and 29 of them were admitted.
“Most of the serious injuries caused during New Year are as a result of drunken drivers as well as drunken people fighting,” he said.
Another young girl who had sustained injuries
The Deputy Director of Jaffna General Hospital, Dr. K. Nandakumar, said 94 injured people had been admitted due to traffic accidents and violence.
He said the injured were not giving true accounts of the incidents due to legal reasons.
“We see very much fewer fireworks-related incidents but violence and accidents continue,” he said.
Kandy Hospital Director R.M.S.K. Ratnayake said only one patient had come in with a fireworks-related injury from a total of 43 men and two women injured during the New Year celebrations.
| Come Avurudu, Nuwara Eliya turns into a dumping ground By Shelton Hettiarachchi Despite Nuwara Eliya being a tourist destination for both local and foreign tourist alike during this time of the year, the town has still not come up with a proper plan to dispose of the waste created by the thousands who flock to the hill station. Holiday makers who flock to the area during the ‘season’ in fact now pose a grave threat to the environment and sanitation of the city. Empty bottles of liquor and a variety of empty tins lying scattered is a familiar sight for early in the mornings. The number of signs prohibiting throwing litter seen in Nuwara Eliya is a testament to the unhealthy situation prevalent in the area. More buses for returning commuters after Avurudu break More than 300 extra buses will be deployed today for the convenience of commuters who return to Colombo after Auvrudu, a senior official of the Sri Lanka Transport Board (SLTB) told the Sunday Times. SLTB Director General Raja Gunethileka said the bus services would operate on routes from Trincomalee, Monaragala,Badulla, Kandy, Kurunegala, Anuradhapura, Mayhiyanganaya, Galle, Matara, Embilipitiya and Jaffna among others. This is in addition to the700 buses that are in operation. Fifty extra buses are also plying on the two highways for passengers travelling from Matara, Galle and Negombo. Commuters will not be charged extra. National Transport Commission Chairman D.S Jayaweera said private bus operators have also been given special route permits to operate additional bus services from Colombo to several destinations by the Road Transport Authority. They have been warned against charging higher fares. He said the extra bus services will continue till April 21 and if there were reports of over-charging, action would be taken against the culprits. |