Friday, January 08, 2010

Eleven dead on roads over New Year period

From: The News
Eleven people died and 189 were injured in road accidents during the period spanning New Year's Eve and January 1.

A total of 138 road accidents occurred within that period. Despite the grim statistics, the roads in the country were safer than in the previous year, says Agnieszka Hameliusz from the Warsaw Police Headquarters:

"Statistics are much better than over the previous new year period. We had less accidents, less fatalities. Police officers have, however, seized more drivers under the influence of alcohol," she told Polskie Radio.

The police charged 600 drunk drivers, 400 of them on 1 January.

Police reported only one accident resulting from mishandling of fireworks. Meanwhile, no serious crimes were noted at the open-air events across the country.

Poles return home drunk through snow, ice

Police brace themselves for a steep increase in road accidents as Poles return home from the seasonal holiday just as temperatures plunge to minus 18 tonight.

Traffic police have already caught 773 people for drunk driving. Eighteen have died in the last two days on the roads, 253 were injured in 183 accidents. Compared to last year these figures are comparatively good but they are expected to rise, sharply, as Poles struggle home through snow and ice, warns Przemyslaw Rzelniewski the General Directorate for National Roads and Motorways.

The worst conditions are currently in southern and central Poland. southern provinces and in the middle of the Polish. Snow ploughs and salting machines are trying to keep roads clear but are hampered in many places by strong winds.

The maximum temperature are expected to plunge to between minus 11 to minus 8 degrees Celsius in most places with only coastal districts reaching a comparatively warm minus 2 degree C.