PARAMARIBO--Two people died Thursday afternoon in a car crash on the Afobakka highway in District Brokopondo. Five were admitted to hospital in critical condition.
The accident was between two minibuses, both carrying passengers. According to eyewitnesses, the buses that were traveling in opposite directions slammed head on into each other when the one heading to Brokopondo swerved onto the wrong lane for unknown reasons. The eyewitnesses said the bus was traveling at excessive speed. Both buses were left a total loss, with passengers and their belongings strewn along the roadside.
One of the drivers died on impact. A passenger passed away in the ambulance on the way to the Academic Hospital in Paramaribo. Their names have not been released as yet.
The Afobaka highway is a long stretch of road that connects Paramaribo to villages in District Brokopondo in the south. Since it was paved a number of years ago, it has been the scene of numerous fatal car crashes.
Thursday’s minibus accident takes the number of traffic fatalities to 74 so far this year. In 2015 traffic claimed 59 lives. In 2014 the tally stood at 61.
