International
The difficult fight against bloodletting on the roads in Peru
Shreed buses, frontal collisions of vehicles, invaded lanes… The scenes are repeated mainly on weekends.
Between 2021 and 2023 there was an annual average of 3,000 deaths on the roads, according to the National Road Safety Observatory of the Ministry of Transport (ONSV), which links the high accident with three main causes: recklessness at the wheel, speeding and drunkenness.
By the beginning of May, 970 people had died on the slopes. And there is still a lack of the school holiday season and several holidays, including the end of the year, when accidents usually increase.
In Peru, the mortality rate from traffic accidents was 14 people per 100,000 inhabitants in 2019, compared to the average of 17 victims per 100,000 in the Americas, according to the World Bank.
In 2023, 87,172 accidents were officially reported that left 3,138 dead.
The efforts of the authorities to improve control managed to reduce the rate to 9.5 deaths per 100,000 inhabitants last year, but the bloodlet on the roads continues.
Cornelio lost his family in March. A bus invaded the opposite lane of the Panamericana Highway and hit the family van, 147 km north of Lima.
This 36-year-old farmer was going ahead in another vehicle along with some workers. His wife, his two children, two brothers and a sister-in-law never arrived at the meeting place.
“My soul broke, we will never recover from this, for pleasure we have made the house. Now we have a void,” he tells AFP in a choppy voice.
Last month, in only four accidents there were 60 deaths, a figure not included in the count until the beginning of May.
“It is true that there are contributory factors, for example, the climatic issue, the state of a vehicle or a road, the human factor is predominant and determining,” Larry Ampuero, spokesman for the Superintendence of Transport (Sutran), tells AFP.
According to that organization, 70% of accidents occur in cities and 30% on roads.
“There is informality due to lack of control, but also there is no good road network, we have an infrastructure in poor condition and lack of maintenance,” said Martín Ojeda, manager of the interprovincial transport guild to RPP radio.
The human factor is in many cases related to the fatigue of the drivers of the public transport service. The law establishes a limit of ten hours a day for driving buses.
“Drivers generally suffer from drowsiness or tiredness because they work more hours than allowed,” Luis Quispe, director of Luz Ámbar, an NGO that studies the phenomenon of the high accident rate, tells AFP.
The interprovincial service guild maintains that it complies with the rules and that each bus travels with a spare driver, but the drivers question it.
“It is the fault of certain factors, both of the driver or the company that suddenly makes us work too many hours, practically 24 hours,” bus driver Julio Camarena tells AFP.
“They also have to see the state of the roads, which is terrible at the national level, we would say for the most part,” adds Camarena, 51, from the Yerbateros bus terminal in Lima.
On its side, the Association of Victims of Traffic Accidents (Aviactran) points to the indolence of the authorities and the lack of justice as the biggest problems on the roads.
“The State is not worried that accidents will increase, it does not want to solve the problem,” Carlos Villegas, president of that organization, tells AFP.
According to Villegas, so far this year there are “more than 36,000 accidents.”
“The authorities are responsible for all traffic accidents, that’s why we are going to sue them,” he emphasizes.
80% of the injured – he adds – do not receive justice in their lawsuits against companies and authorities “for corruption” of the system.
“We feel very disappointed with the State,” says Villegas, who created Aviactran because a drunk doctor at the wheel seriously injured his nine-year-old son in 2006.
International
U.S. Senate Rejects Budget, Bringing Government Closer to Shutdown Amid DHS Dispute
The U.S. Senate voted on Thursday against a budget proposal in a move aimed at pressuring changes at the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), following the killing of two civilians during a deployment of immigration agents in Minneapolis.
All Senate Democrats and seven Republican lawmakers voted against the bill, which requires 60 votes to advance, pushing the country closer to a partial government shutdown that would cut funding for several agencies, including the Pentagon and the Department of Health.
The rejection came as Senate leaders and the White House continue negotiations on a separate funding package for DHS that would allow reforms to the agency. Proposed measures include banning Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents from wearing face coverings and requiring them to use body-worn cameras during operations.
The vote took place just hours after President Donald Trump said he was “close” to reaching an agreement with Democrats and did not believe the federal government would face another shutdown, following last year’s record stoppage.
“I don’t think the Democrats want a shutdown either, so we’ll work in a bipartisan way to avoid it. Hopefully, there will be no government shutdown. We’re working on that right now,” Trump said during a Cabinet meeting at the White House.
International
Trump Says Putin Agreed to One-Week Halt in Attacks on Ukraine Amid Extreme Cold
U.S. President Donald Trump said on Thursday that he secured a commitment from Russian President Vladimir Putinto halt attacks against Ukraine for one week, citing extreme weather conditions affecting the region.
“Because of the extreme cold (…) I personally asked Putin not to attack Kyiv or other cities and towns for a week. And he agreed. He was very pleasant,” Trump said during a Cabinet meeting broadcast by the White House.
Trump acknowledged that several advisers had questioned the decision to make the call.
“A lot of people told me not to waste the call because they wouldn’t agree. And he accepted. And we’re very happy they did, because they don’t need missiles hitting their towns and cities,” the president said.
According to Trump, Ukrainian authorities reacted with surprise to the announcement but welcomed the possibility of a temporary ceasefire.
“It’s extraordinarily cold, record cold (…) They say they’ve never experienced cold like this,” he added.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky later commented on the announcement, expressing hope that the agreement would be honored.
International
Storm Kristin Kills Five in Portugal, Leaves Nearly 500,000 Without Power
Storm Kristin, which battered Portugal with heavy rain and strong winds early Wednesday, has left at least five people dead, while nearly half a million residents remained without electricity as of Thursday, according to updated figures from authorities.
The revised death toll was confirmed to AFP by a spokesperson for the National Emergency and Civil Protection Authority (ANPEC). On Wednesday, the agency had reported four fatalities.
Meanwhile, E-Redes, the country’s electricity distribution network operator, said that around 450,000 customers were still without power, particularly in central Portugal.
Emergency services responded to approximately 1,500 incidents between midnight and 8:00 a.m. local time on Wednesday, as the storm caused widespread disruptions.
The Portuguese government described Kristin as an “extreme weather event” that inflicted significant damage across several regions of the country. At the height of the storm, as many as 850,000 households and institutions lost electricity during the early hours of Wednesday.
Several municipalities ordered the closure of schools, many of which remained shut on Thursday due to ongoing adverse conditions.
Ricardo Costa, regional deputy commander of the Leiria Fire Brigade, said residents continue to seek assistance as rainfall persists.
“Even though the rain is not extremely intense, it is causing extensive damage to homes,” he noted.
In Figueira da Foz, a coastal city in central Portugal, strong winds toppled a giant Ferris wheel, underscoring the severity of the storm.
U.S. Senate Rejects Budget, Bringing Government Closer to Shutdown Amid DHS Dispute
Trump Says Putin Agreed to One-Week Halt in Attacks on Ukraine Amid Extreme Cold
Storm Kristin Kills Five in Portugal, Leaves Nearly 500,000 Without Power
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