The Center for Emergency Operations (COE) estimates 6.5 million persons took to the road to travel throughout the country over the Christmas and New Year holidays. Many who work in tourism destinations returned to the cities, but most were people headed to beach and mountain areas to spend the holidays with friends and family.
The COE reports that at least 10 persons perished in traffic accidents over the New Year holiday. In all, of the ten people who were killed, eight were motorcycle riders. The other two were a marathon runner and a cyclist who was hit by a car.
The COE registered 61 accidents that affected 73 persons. There were over 170 cases of intoxication reported, including 13 minors. Over two dozen persons were reported to have food poisoning.
Authorities reported that there were over 10,000 vehicles stopped for inspection and over 2000 motorcycle drivers were cited for not having helmets.
One headline read: Motorcyclist without helmet-big truck without license plates. (You can figure out the rest).
The National Health Service (SNS) reported that a little over 1,000 persons were seen by physicians, with over 700 due to traffic accidents, food or alcohol poisoning.
Santiago province reports zero deaths over the New Year’s holidays, repeating the same result for the Christmas holiday.
An editorial in Diario Libre highlights that motorcycle drivers were involved in 28 of 39 tragic deaths. The editorialist says that motorcycle drivers are the main road hazard and points to the laissez-faire attitude of the authorities regarding when implementing the law in regards to motorcycle drivers.
In a wrap-up regarding the COE Christmas-New Year holidays operation, the head of the COE, Juan Manuel Mendez said that the 38 deaths are three more than those that occurred over the 2021-2022 holiday period when there were 35 deaths. The number of traffic accidents is also up to 229 compared to 224 traffic accidents for the previous holiday time.
Read more in Spanish:
Diario Libre
Diario Libre
El Caribe
Diario Libre
Listin Diario
3 January 2023