Updated: Four men injured in two accidents

Adam Calleja Urry

Nov 1st 2010, 14:59

Trust me they aren't only seen during daylight! Somehow everytime I park my car in an area with a time limit (which please note is always empty as there are around 100 car spaces for a total of 20residents in this particular area) these wardens seem to crawl under from a rock and issue me with a ticket. But I do get what you mean, I've never seen one after the sun has gone down...

Such cases are far more important then serious matters happening on our roads in the weekend after 1am...but a big thumbs up to these guys...for making our roads a safer place.....yeah right!

Vince Tanti

Oct 31st 2010, 13:08

People need to be more careful with comments made. Being the second person on site at the San Gwann accident this morning, and having recently successfully completed a first aid course I was able to give the three injured youths the necessary first aid until the police and ambulances arrived.
I could not detect any evidence of drink from any of the three young people injured, but naturally I cannot confirm that they did not drink. From initial communication I had with all three of them it is very likely that the driver nodded off seconds before the impact. This could happen to anyone, especially young people after a long night of clubbing, dancing, and probably also drinking. It is this problem that we need to address, starting at home. I have seven children, two of them of driving age. I have always told them and/or the people they go out with to call me wherever they are and at whatever time if they do not feel up to driving due to tiredness or any other reason.
Oh, and for the record, serious accidents involving female drivers are common too these days. Unfortunately gender is not an issue here!

J Oatmon

Oct 31st 2010, 15:24

@ Vince Tanti

I stand by what I wrote, EU statistics clearly show fatal accidents by gender are as follows: - males 75% and females 25%. Also 21% of accidents are by 18-25 year old drivers.

http://ec.europa.eu/lietuva/documents/1177679582_press_stats_en.pdf

Fred Medhurst

Oct 31st 2010, 16:29

@ j oatman You are not standing by what you have written at all. You first instance was to suggest that these were drink drivers and when it was suggested by the first aider (thankfully they were around) that they did not appear to have been drinking you changed your tack and then went on to quote some EU statistics about accidents. This seems remarkably like you are trying to find evidence for your own disproved theory. I am not disputing the statistics and am only too aware of accidents particularly with young people. I lost my 17 year old brother to a traffic accident. He wasn't drunk or had even ever had alcohol in his life. He was knocked from his cycle by a woman driver. I am not looking to lay blame. It was unlucky circumstances for two unlucky (yes she is a victim too) people. Thankfully there weren't comments around such as yours creating unwanted or unproven theories at that time. You should let the accident investigators do their job and supply an answer rather than foist your own unfounded ideas and prejudices fit your requirements.

J Oatmon

Oct 31st 2010, 19:03

@ Fred Medhurst
It seems you are reading more than I wrote - I never suggested the people in these particular accidents were drunk. Read what I wrote carefully, and you will see my comments are of a general nature (I never referred to these accidents at all - as you have done). The statistics confirm my words (there is no mention of these accidents), so you are jumping to conclusions, not I.

M Bugeja

Nov 2nd 2010, 13:40

@ J Oatmon:
"coincidence, not likely, more likely booze was the main contributing factor".

Unless my English has somehow deteriorated overnight, that is a very blatant suggestion that in your opinion, alcohol was a main factor, ie, the reason, behind the accident.

Either way, whether this was the case or not, it is not up to us to decide, or worse, to judge.

I agree with whoever said sleepiness was probably an issue; microsleep (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microsleep) is the most likely reason (especially at 5am!)