351 New Year road deaths in Thailand

At least 351 people were killed in road accidents and 3,970 injured over a five-day New Year period in Thailand.

Many accidents were caused by drunken motorcycle riders, officials said

More than 3,500 road accidents occurred between December 28 and January 1, as Thais travelled from cities to beaches and mountains in large numbers, said Anucha Mokkawej, chief of the Interior Ministry’s Disaster Prevention and Mitigation Centre.

Most holidaymakers will be returning to work tomorrow morning, but the centre will be keep count of accidents until the end of the day.

About 47% of accidents were due to drink-driving and 25 per cent were attributed to fast driving. Motorcycles were involved in 88 percent of vehicles that had accidents.

During last year’s holiday period, 347 were killed over the first five days.