Lebanon car-crash fatalities out of control
About 900 people are killed, 12,000 injured and 2,000 permanently disabled each year in Lebanon in road accidents, said head of the Youth Association for Social Awareness (YASA) Tuesday at a conference held in the town of Aley.
The conference was organized by YASA and the Lebanese Scouts Organization in Aley and came as a commemoration of all the victims of road accidents in Lebanon, namely young man Salam Harb who died in a tragic car accident in Aley two weeks ago.
Head of YASA Ziad Akl expressed regret during the gathering that the rate of car accidents in Lebanon was constantly rising while it was decreasing in other countries. “Why do we hear of positive results in Syria, Jordan, and Saudi Arabia more than we do in Lebanon while it was in this country that YASA was founded?” he asked.
Akl added that since the tragic incident of Salam Harb, 40 new people have fallen victims to car accidents. “There is a tragic story behind each case and there are families and friends crying over each loss. I am amazed still that the percentage of car accidents is dropping all over the world except in Lebanon,” he said.
YASA is a NGO that aims at raising awareness about road accidents and safe driving. It was founded in 1996 and developed from a club at the Lebanese American University to an international association with active members in 14 countries.