Carnival celebrated with deaths, impaired driving, stabbings and shootings
Carnival, the pre-Lenten riotous celebration which is loved by some detested by others is also a time of death, injury and crime.
In the first two days of the four day fest there were eight traffic deaths three are in carnival areas;one in Los Santos, one, a 16 year old in Henderson, one in La Chorrera,where a citizen died after being hit by a vehicle.
The Traffic Operations Division issued a 2, 262 tickets, handled 201 traffic incidents, towed 320 vehicles towed for various faults and assisted 38 injured people
Speeding accounted for 417 of the tickets and impaired driving 192.
Social Security health units handled 66 pre-hospitalization cases and 1,682, were treated in emergency rooms The highest incidence rates were in Panama City followed by, Cocle and Bocas del Toro.
Tthe Ministry of Health, handled 412 carnival injuries of which 251 patients had multiple injuries, 128 were injured with sharp tipped weapons and 16 wounded by gunfire.