Camels on the road may have set off a crash that killed six people in Yemen’s southeastern province of Hadramout on Friday, May 15.
A statement from the government-aligned Emergency Forces, cited by Xinhua, said the crash happened late that day on the Al Abr international highway, a key transit route between Yemen and neighboring Saudi Arabia. Preliminary information pointed to the bus driver losing control while trying to avoid camels crossing the road. The bus veered into the opposite lane and hit a medium-sized truck head-on, the statement said. Xinhua put the injured at 19.
Preliminary findings
An investigation committee from the Ministry of Transport released its own preliminary findings on May 18, and its numbers differ. Yemen TV reported that the committee counted six dead and 24 injured, with six passengers coming through unharmed. It named the vehicle as a public transport bus run by Al-Barakah Company, which struck a camel on the main road, swerved and then crashed into a “Dina” type vehicle.
Medical teams reached the scene soon after the collision. Injured passengers were treated first at Al Abr public hospital, and some were later moved to the city of Sayoun for further care. Authorities inspected the site and recorded witness statements.
Yemeni Transport Minister Mohsen Al-Amri said a committee has been formed to establish what happened and to carry out the necessary legal procedures. The committee stressed that its report is preliminary and that the inquiry will go on to find further details and assign accountability.
Recommendations
The committee urged quick repairs to the international roads, clear signage and tighter regulation of truck traffic on major routes. It also called for emergency response points and more security patrols along the Al Abr route, along with protective measures where camels often cross.
Deadly road accidents are frequent in Yemen, Xinhua noted, where damaged infrastructure, poorly maintained highways and weak traffic safety systems endanger travelers. The country has been in crisis since late 2014, when the Houthis seized the capital Sanaa and large swathes of the north. A Saudi-led coalition intervened in 2015 in support of the government.
Sources
- 6 killed, 19 injured in bus-truck collision in SE Yemen
- Preliminary Findings Released on Fatal Traffic Accident in Al-Abr, Hadramout » Yemen TV
