Traffic accidents kill over 5,100 in Vietnam in Jan-Jul, down 3.7% The scene of a serious road accident that killed three people and injured five others in the north-central province of Thanh Hoa on July 19, 2015. Tuoi Tre The numbers of traffic accidents and resulting deaths and injuries decreased in the seven months ending on July 15 compared to the same period last year, the National Traffic Safety Committee reported on Tuesday. From December 16, 2014 to July 15, 2015, 12,910 traffic accidents happened throughout the country, killing 5,167 people and injuring 11,484 others, the committee said. As such, 738 people died per month on average in traffic accidents over the period, or nearly 25 people per day. In comparison with the same period last year, the numbers of traffic accidents and resulting deaths and injuries are down by 12.39 percent, 3.76 percent and 16.53 percent, respectively. In the period from June 16 to July 15, 689 people died and 1,335 others were wounded in 1,731 traffic accidents across the country, the committee said. As compared year on year, the number of deaths in that period rose by nine, or 1.32 percent, and the injuries went down by 160, or 10.7 percent, while the number of accidents dropped by 178, or 9.32 percent. During the seven-month period, traffic police officers handled over 2.4 million cases of traffic rule violations nationwide, issued fines totaling over VND1.57 trillion (US$72 million), impounded 25,044 automobiles and 288,855 motorbikes, and revoked 202,251 driver’s licenses, the committee said. During the same period, police also dealt with 107,544 violations of waterway regulations around the country and collected VND62.09 billion ($2.85 million) worth of fines. On average, road accidents kill around 9,000 people in Vietnam every year – almost 25 deaths per day – and leave hundreds of thousands of others with life-time injuries, Transport Minister Dinh La Thang said at a requiem held in Ho Chi Minh City on November 10, 2014 for the dead victims. The event was organized to mark the World Day of Remembrance for Victims of Road Traffic Accidents, which falls on the third Sunday of November each year. Worldwide, road accidents claim about 1.3 million lives every year, and the figure is forecast to increase to 1.8-1.9 million in the future, according to the committee. TUOI TRE NEWS