The Northern Region has recorded 148 cases of road crashes from January to mid-December 2021.
Some 37 of these cases were fatalities, 45 life-threatening injuries, and 33 saw minor injuries.
The Regional Motor Traffic and Trasport Department Commander, Supt. Mahamud Yussif, who shared this data with JoyNews, said the region recorded a reduction in accidents this year as compared to last year.
“The department recorded a total of 148 cases and with this figure, we are looking at it from the first to the last quarter, for the first quarter 11 fatal cases, 17 serious cases and 15 minor injury cases making a total of 48 for the first quarter. In the second quarter 15 fatal cases, 17 serious cases and 17 minor injury cases and that add up to 49. Then for the third quarter 11 cases of fatalities, 16 minor injuries and eight serious cases which sum up to 36,” he said
Though the Northern Region recorded a deduction in accident cases the stakeholders are leaving no stone unturned to ensure an accident-free yuletide.
As part of activities to reduce the carnage on the roads the Northern Regional road safety authority has launched a campaign dubbed ‘Stay alive.’
Addressing the media at the launch, the Manager for Road Safety for the Northern and Savanna Regions, Mohammed Abdul Somed, said human error accounted for 90 percent of road crashes.
He added that the Stay Alive campaign has adopted a human factor model to address that challenge.
“We have human errors forming 90 percent of the road carnages but the Stay Alive campaign has adopted a human factor model which puts the human being at the center of the interaction,” he said.
He said the hard truth is that most road crashes are man made which are avoidable.
The Northern Regional Police Commander, COP Timothy Yoosa Bonga, said there has been a collaborative effort with the major stakeholders in the fight against road traffic accidents adding that a lot has been achieved.
”If you remember a few months ago there was a team that came out to enforce the law,” he said.
COP Bonga said compliance with the wearing of helmets has always been problematic in the region but the campaign is gradually changing the attitudes of riders.
“You know we have good number of motor riders in the region and crush helmet has been one area that riders don’t want to comply and these three bodies came together to enforce it and it has yielded a good result,” he said.
COP Yoosa Bonga said the residents have a lot to contribute to the development of the region and need to stay alive.