Thailand bus accident injures 24

An accident in Thailand, in which a bus fell into a roadside ditch, injured 24 people Sunday, and police said they suspect the driver fell asleep while driving. The accident near the end of the 579-mile trip from Bangkok to Hat Yai occurred at 5 a.m. Sunday, the Bangkok Post reported, adding 13 of the injured received treatment at the scene, and 11 were taken to nearby Chumphon Hospital in Chumphon. The accident came after the Transport Ministry promised better safety on the roads following a bus accident Thursday that killed 29 people. The "seven dangerous days" of the New Year period sees soaring traffic fatality rates each year, the newspaper noted. Traffic accidents on Saturday, the second of the "dangerous days," claimed 47 lives and 486 injuries in Thailand, the Disaster Prevention and Mitigation Department said, bringing the two-day totals to 86 killed and 885 injured.