Elderly man on moped killed in road accident

Nicosia police say there was no arrest in a fatal accident on Monday, where an elderly man on a moped was killed after he collided with a car in the Sopaz area, while hours later a bus driver was crushed to death when his idling vehicle ran him over.

According to police, 73-year-old Antonakis Savoullis was riding his moped Monday morning around 9:30am in Pallouriotissa, east Nicosia, when he collided head-on with a vehicle driven by a 66-year-old male.

Savoullis, a pensioner from Nicosia, was riding his moped uphill along Kennedy Avenue, while a 66-year-old local male was driving his vehicle westbound in the opposite lane.

Police said the moped and the car collided at a T-junction, described as the intersection of Kennedy Avenue and Tryfonos Street. An ambulance rushed Savoullis to the Emergency Room at Nicosia General Hospital, where doctors on duty pronounced him dead on arrival.

Media reports said the car attempted to make a right turn on Tryfonos, blocking the path of the moped which was heading eastbound on Kennedy Avenue.

Police told Knews there was no arrest following the incident, while investigators were still trying to ascertain the circumstances that led to the crash.

There were no reports of traffic offences such as speeding or illegal turn, but police said it was too early to draw conclusions.

The accident took place just over an hour before another fatality on the west side of town, where a bus driver was crushed to death in his attempt to stop his parked bus from moving forward.

Police said 51-year-old Panayiotis Christofi from Lakatamia drove his newly-acquired bus to the Makedonitissa terminal around 11:10am. He then left the vehicle in idle position with the engine running and exited the bus, which started moving under circumstances till under investigation.

The bus struck a traffic sign before coming into contact with Christofi, who was in front of the vehicle at the time. He was then trapped underneath the bus which came to a complete stop, killing the driver instantly.

Additional reports said the bus driver was attempting to get back on the moving bus in order to stop it but ended up being crushed to death after failing to gain entry into the vehicle.

There were no passengers on the bus at the time of the incident while police said it appeared that the accident was due to human error, such as not engaging the braking system properly before exiting the vehicle.

Investigators were said to be reviewing security camera footage of the incident.

Cyprus Public Transport, which took over operations in Nicosia and Larnaca districts just one week ago, issued a statement following the incident. The company said it was cooperating with authorities while it also expressed condolences to Christofi’s family.

Police said they believe both accidents were caused by human error.