Man loses arm in crash

By STEPHANIE ELIZAH
A MAN from Lonahan in North Bougainville is recovering after his right arm was amputated at Buka General Hospital following a road accident at Teariki in Tinputz district recently in which his arm was crushed.
Donald Kisu, 30, was returning to Buka from Tinputz in a PMV when it crashed into a hired vehicle that was on its way to Arawa from Buka with journalists on board.
Eye witnesses at the accident scene said the vehicle the journalists were in had swerved into the oncoming lane at a sharp turn at Teariki, a place that is notorious for the many vehicle accidents there.
“Luckily the driver reacted quickly and returned to his lane or more people would have been hurt,” an eyewitness said.
Apart from Kisu, the other two casualties were a broadcast journalist who suffered two broken fingers and a newspaper reporter who had a bruised back.
The journalists from Radio Bougainville, New Dawn FM, The National and a camera man from Kundu 2 along with two directors of the National Broadcasting Corporation were on their way to Arawa for the launch of Kundu 2 and Wantok Radio Light when the accident occurred.
The accident prompted calls by the Bougainville police service and community leaders at Tinputz for drivers to drive at a reasonable speed along the Buka to Arawa trunk road.
“Drivers must observe all traffic rules, including driving within speed limits and do not overload passengers on your vehicle.
“It is the Christmas period where we usually experience more road accidents because of drivers speeding,” a police statement said.