A total of 1 828 road accidents recorded between January and August

Staff Reporter

A TOTAL of 1 828 road accidents were recorded between 1 January and 27 August, with the majority of these taking place in the Khomas and Erongo regions.

This was revealed by the Namibian Police’s (Nampol) Head of Public Relations, Deputy Commissioner Kauna Shikwambi, who disclosed that the 1 828 road accidents resulted in the injury of 3 262 people and the death of 241 people.

The Khomas Region reported the highest number of road accidents during this period, with 681 incidents. Other regions, namely Erongo, Oshana, Otjozondjupa, and Oshikoto, also had significant accident counts, with 253, 176, 151, and 124 accidents, respectively.

Regarding injuries resulting from these accidents, the Khomas Region recorded 988 cases, while Erongo, Otjozondjupa, Oshana, and Oshikoto regions reported 442, 332, 307, and 285 injuries, respectively. In terms of fatalities, the Oshikoto Region had the highest death toll, with 37 fatalities during the observation period. This was followed by the Erongo Region with 35 deaths, and the Khomas and Otjozondjupa regions, which reported 29 and 26 fatalities due to road accidents, respectively.

Shikwambi emphasized that a significant number of road accidents occurred on weekends, with 351 accidents on Saturdays and 314 on Sundays. These incidents led to 615 injuries and 68 deaths on Saturdays and 647 injuries and 45 deaths on Sundays.

Given these alarming statistics, Shikwambi expressed deep concern and called upon all road users to exercise responsible driving behaviour.
“Road accidents have become a significant concern for law enforcers. Almost, every day, a life is lost due to reckless driving, negligence, and ignorance to road safety measures. It is a distressing fact that many of these accidents could have been prevented through simple precautions and responsible behaviour,” she said.

Shikwambi urged drivers to adhere to traffic regulations, avoid distractions while driving, refrain from driving under the influence of intoxicating substances, ensure the roadworthiness of their vehicles, and to always wear seat belts while in a moving vehicle.

“Additionally, I would extend a serious caution and deterrence to accident scene bystanders who has a habit of filming accident scenes and further circulate horrific scenes on social media, to desist from such practice,” she added.

File photo for illustrative purposes only.