The crashes also left at least three people injured.
14ymedio, Havana, 5 July 2024 — On Thursday, seven people died on Cuban roads in two traffic crashes. One of them occurred at the exit of Santa Lucía Beach in the province of Camagüey and the other in the town of Las Mangas, in Granma province, according to reports from relatives of the victims and witnesses of both accidents. The crash in Camagüey involved two cars, one of them stopped at the side of the road. According to several witnesses published in the Facebook group “Accidents Buses & Trucks” for more experience and fewer victims, one of the cars stopped for two young people to get out, but they exited through the wrong door and were hit by another vehicle that was coming down the road.
The collision with the two people caused the moving car to overturn and catch on fire at a point near the Los Olivos bridge, in the community of El Carmen, an area known as Las 80. The occupants of the front seats managed to get out but two women traveling in the back died as a result of the flames.
According to witnesses of the accident, at least two other people were injured and were transferred to the municipality of Nuevitas for medical attention
The two young people who died when they were hit by the car have been identified as Cliver Álvarez Tamayo, 17 years old and Dailenis Silva, 19, residents of the municipality of Manatí de Las Tunas, according to the digital newspaper CubaNet. The women who died in the fire were Milagros Hernández and Yamila Marín, as published by the portal Cubanos por el Mundo and the news site CiberCuba.
According to witnesses of the accident, at least two other people were injured and were transferred to the municipality of Nuevitas to receive medical attention
The other crash this Thursday was a collision between a Yutong bus on the route between Bayamo and Havana and a horse cart in the town of Las Mangas, in Granma province. In the crash, three people died and a girl was seriously injured. All the deceased and the youngest injured were traveling in the cart.
According to relatives of the victims, two of the deceased were brothers and owners of the horse cart. While they were traveling on the road, they picked up a mother with two children; the youngest of the minors was the third person to die in the crash. The passengers and the bus driver were not hurt.
According to relatives of the victims, two of the deceased were brothers and owners of the horse cart
Recently, in the official TV program Round Table, the head of the Specialized Transit Body of the Ministry of the Interior, Roberto Rodríguez, admitted that the massive movements of travelers to beaches and vacation destinations in summer keep the Transit authorities on the Island on alert; they fear that the current economic crisis may influence the accidents. The official also acknowledged that the entity has not been able to “stop the deterioration of the roads and signage.”
The official was pleased that the first half of this year has better indicators than the same period of 2023. According to him, 543 fewer accidents occurred – a decrease of 13% – the number of deaths fell by 23% and the number of injured by 5%. Likewise, the number of victims between 21 and 35 years old – 35% of deaths in accidents are in this age range – also declined, although Rodríguez did not offer specific figures in this case.
Rodríguez did not delve into the reason for the decrease in crashes, but it’s possible that the reduced circulation of vehicles due to the lack of fuel is an important factor.
Translated by Regina Anavy
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