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Deadly Road and Air Crashes in PNG at Start of Year 2010 |
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Written by Administrator
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Sunday, 24 January 2010 04:17 |
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Papua New Guinea did not start the year 2010 on a brighter note with a fatal road accident in early January that claimed 39 lives instantly and later 8 more who succumbed at the hospital beds. The road accident in the Markham Valley of Morobe Province near Umi Bridge involving two public transport buses was the worst in the history of Papua New Guinea. Two weeks later, their was a near fatal crash in Kikori, Gulf Province when a Twin Otter plane owned by Airlines PNG veered off the runaway with three passengers and two national pilots. Luckily no one including villagers living next to the airstrip got hurt.
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Prior to these accidents and a few weeks earlier just before the 2009 Christmas, a small plane carrying a family of six to Baindoang Village also in the Morobe Province from Nadzab International Airport met their fate when the small one-engined plane plunged into the mountains of Nabak and Upper Wain area of Nawaeb District. The pilot of the small plane was the only survivor.
These accidents raises serious questions about the safety of transport system in Papua New Guinea for a simple villager to frequent travellers including international guests who visit Papua New Guinea for business, tourism and other reasons. Who should shoulder the blame? Imagine how the story would have been if one of the buses was transporting international tourists. The government should seriously take responsibility instead of shifting the blame to irresponsible driving. These accidents could have been avoided if transport authorities were conducting road blocks to check on unlicensed drivers, unfit vehicles as well as regular maintenance of the roads and setup of safety signs to warn drivers.
Below are pictures of the fatal road accident in Markham as well as twin otter crash in Kikori. Warning: Some of the photos of the road accident are graphic:
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