Traffic accidents kill 53 on National Highway 5 in H1

Illustrative image (Photo: VNA)

Hanoi (VNA) – Up to 47 traffic accidents occurred on National Highway 5 in the first six months of this year, killing 53 people and injuring 32 others, the National Traffic Safety Committee reported.

The figures are rather high as compared with those for the whole 2018 when 81 accidents, 67 deaths and 45 injuries were reported, the committee said.

Most of the accidents occurred on the section crossing Hai Duong province, with 30 cases, 30 deaths and 13 injures last year.

During the first half of this year, the section witnessed 27 accidents that left 38 people dead and 24 others injured.

Most recently, three consecutive accidents happened on the road section, killing seven people on July 23.

One of them occurred at around 4:10am when a 16-seat van hit a walker who was doing morning exercise on the highway. The crash killed the 81-year-old man instantly.

The accident drew in a crowd of curious passersby and it was not long before things got even worse. A cargo truck, which was travelling from Hanoi to Hai Phong, veered to the side of the road in an effort to avoid the divider and ran straight into the crowd at around 6am.

The truck toppled over, crushing seven watchers and four motorbikes beneath it. Local traffic police said five died on the spot while two others were injured.-VNA