Police raise alarm after three fatalities in a row

Another senior citizen was killed in a road accident on Sunday, marking the third fatality over the weekend and prompting police to say they are doing everything they can but drivers also need to do their part.

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A vehicle driven by a senior citizen plunged into a ditch some 50 metres deep on Sunday afternoon, in Lania, Limassol district.

The driver, a 71-year-old male, was driving along the Saitta-Limassol road with his 84-year-old wife as a passenger, when he is believed to have lost control of the steering wheel around 3:45pm.

Emergency rescuers and fire fighters pulled out the couple from the wreckage, which was rushed to the Emergency Room at Limassol General Hospital where doctors on duty pronounced the man dead on arrival.

Police said the circumstances of the accident were still under investigation, without ruling out a medical event. They also called publicly on an unidentified driver who was believed to have been in the car right behind the couple’s vehicle to come forward as a potential eye witness.

A police statement on Sunday said the list of road accident victims was getting longer, calling on drivers to realize they are not invincible, adding that people ought to change their mindset and drive defencively.

“The hundreds of traffic citations being issued every day may be unpopular with members of the public, but they are meant to convince drivers, at least out of fear of getting a ticket, to comply with traffic regulations,” the statement said.

Police emergency meeting after third fatality

Two fatal accidents also took place on Saturday night, with a 75-year-old car driver killed instantly in a car pileup in Limassol with others injured and a 24-year-old biker succumbing to his injuries hours after a Nicosia collision in Latchia area just outside the capital.

The Chief of Police has summoned all local traffic police directors and district chiefs in an emergency session on Monday morning, in order to discuss the recent road deaths as well as address any possible flaws and identify best practices in the effort to prevent fatalities.