Gulf | Bahrain
Call for action to reduce fatal accidents in Bahrain
Bahraini officials are pleading for the installation of humps to reduce speed on the country's causeways and flyovers, saying that the rate of fatal accidents was unacceptable.
- By Habib Toumi, Bahrain Bureau Chief
- Published: 18:34 June 28, 2009
Manama: Bahraini officials are pleading for the installation of humps to reduce speed on the country's causeways and flyovers, saying that the rate of fatal accidents was unacceptable.
"The causeways that link Manama with Muharraq have now turned into a major scene of fatal accidents caused by speeding cars clearing reservations and overturning onto the other side," Ali Al Muqla, from the Muharraq municipal council, said.
"Many innocent people have lately died because of the accidents and we do need to see stringent action to address them," he said, adding that earlier calls for action to reduce speed have not been heeded.
Air hostess killed in accident
However, the new call takes a new significance after a 23-year-old Moroccan air hostess was killed and her three female companions were seriously injured on Thursday when their car crashed into a truck and eventually caused a four-vehicle pile-up that blocked the passage to Muharraq, the country's second largest city and the location of the international airport.
Traffic officers said that the woman was speeding and lost control of her car. The crash was so violent that the airhostess, who was not wearing a seatbelt, was thrown out of the vehicle and hit by a petrol tanker. The three passengers were taken to hospital for treatment
The police had to close the causeway to help with the rescue effort and the investigation, forcing cars heading towards Muharraq, Bahrain's second largest city, to take detours.
The ensuing traffic jam heavily disrupted the flow of cars on Manama's busiest highway.
In April, five people, including a four-year-old child, were killed on a Manama-Muharraq causeway after a driver lost control of his car, cleared the central reservation and smashed into a car, killing the four Bahrainis inside. The second car overturned several times and collided with a third car, killing its driver.
Earlier this month, Cameron John Clow, a multisport competitor from New Zealand, was killed while out training on his bike near the causeway.
The 29-old-year teacher was riding on his bike when an allegedly speeding car ploughed into him. Family sources said that he was planning to get married with his Bahrain-based fiancee Kate Morgan in December.
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