Pakistan: Road accidents on I-Day leave 17 dead, 1,773 injured in Punjab

Lahore (Punjab) [Pakistan]: While Pakistan was busy celebrating Independence Day, the Punjab province witnessed a wave of road accidents leaving 17 dead and 1,773 others injured in 1,659 traffic accidents, Dawn reported.

Lahore registered the highest number of road accidents. On Monday, Lahore’s major government hospitals witnessed an extraordinary burden on the patients who suffered injuries in road accidents.

According to the official data compiled by the Emergency Service Department (ESD), nine people died, and 1,338 others were injured in 1,234 road accidents reported all over the province on Aug 13, a day before Independence Day.

The accident and emergency wards of the major government hospitals in Lahore witnessed an extraordinary burden of patients who suffered injuries in road accidents on August 14, as per Dawn.

The road accidents during the celebrations also left several persons disabled for life as the ESD stated that 99 people suffered deep head injuries and 187 others multiple fractures.

According to the official data, out of a total of 1,773 injured persons, 850 landed in hospitals with serious and critical wounds, while 891 others suffered minor injuries. Those with minor injuries were provided first aid and treatment by the Rescue 1122 medical teams on the spot.

“A majority (72 per cent) of the accidents involved motorbikes, therefore, effective enforcement of traffic laws and lane discipline were essential to reduce the increasing number of road traffic crashes”, read the ESD report.

Furthermore, the analysis showed, 833 drivers, 88 underage drivers, 211 pedestrians, and 710 passengers were among the victims of road traffic crashes, Dawn reported.

The statistics show that 424 road accidents were reported in Lahore, affecting 462 persons, followed by 148 reported in Multan with 151 victims/injured persons and Faisalabad with 96 accidents and 91 victims.

The report shows that in the 1,773 accidents, 1,441 males and 313 females suffered injuries.

About the age group, the report stated that 415 of them were under 18 years of age, 891 between 18 and 40 years and the remaining 448 were above 40 years of age.

According to the data, 1,481 motorbikes, 78 auto-rickshaws, 160 motorcars, 27 vans, 13 passenger buses, 24 trucks and 113 other types of auto vehicles and slow-moving carts were involved in these road accidents in Punjab, according to Dawn.

Other than the road accidents in lahor, a minor girl, who was enjoying Independence Day celebrations with her parents at the Minar-i-Pakistan, was hit by a stray bullet which caused instant death, while the young man, who was the only brother of his two sisters, also fell prey to a stray bullet.