Myanmar national Ye Min Aung, 26, died after his motorbike collided with a passenger van in front of Kuathungthong restaurant on Wichit Songkram Rd in Kathu, officials reported this morning.
Ye Min Aung was unconscious at the scene. He had suffered two broken legs, heavy abrasions to his arms and severe head injuries. He was later pronounced dead from his injuries.
Mr Ye was not wearing a helmet, officials noted in their report.
Mr Ye’s death came within the second day of the nationwide Seven Days of Danger road-safety campaign, which began on Thursday and continues through to midnight next Wednesday (Apr 11-17).
Day 2 of the campaign, from midnight to midnight yesterday (Apr 12) also saw four people injured in four accidents in Phuket, according to the official statistics presented by the Phuket office of the Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation DDPM-Phuket) this morning.
Meanwhile, Phuket police reported issuing 2,313 fines for moving violations during the 24-hour period, as follows:
- 76 fined for operating an unsafe/illegally modified motorcycle
- 153 fined for not wearing seatbelts
- 689 fined for driving without a licence
- 24 fined for speeding
- 62 fined for ignoring traffic signals
- 72 fined for ghost driving (driving opposite traffic flow)
- 34 fined for dangerously cutting off other motorists in traffic
- 59 fined for using mobile phones while driving.
- 102 people were arrested for drunk driving during the period.
- 1,042 people fined for not wearing helmets
At the meeting this morning, Phuket Vice Governor Prakob Wongmaneerung noted, “Regarding the causes of accidents in the area of Phuket, the risk factors remain at the individual, namely, motorcyclists not complying with traffic rules, including reckless driving, not wearing a helmet and driving against traffic flow, which all cause accidents.
“In the case of the provincial solution measures, the work plan will be adjusted. Officers and public relations staff are to increase their efforts with the campaign to create an understanding among the people to follow traffic rules
“Therefore, if a traffic violator is found, officers performing their duties at the various checkpoints (across the island) will proceed to to catch and prosecute to the highest penalty against those who violate and do not follow traffic rules.”
Also noted at the meeting was that 50 soldiers from Army Region 4 military base have been deployed to assist the 363 officers already posted at checkpoints across the island.
Maritime safety is also to be boosted during the period, V/Gov Prakob explained, despite Phuket so far not recording any deaths or injuries from boating incidents.
There were 1,017 boat-trips ferrying 27,976, tourists in total yesterday (Apr 12), with 13,912 passengers inbound and 14,064 passengers outbound at piers in Phuket – an increase of 13.48% in marine passenger traffic, he added.