Two drown after car overturns

A DRIVER and a passenger drowned after their car overturned and rolled into a river in Gulf on Boxing Day.
The two men were allegedly drunk at the time of the accident.
Kerema police station commander Snr Insp Michael Pakyei claimed the vehicle was travelling at high speed when the driver lost control while trying to negotiate a bend near Malalaua Station at about 3pm on Saturday.
He said the driver lived in Port Moresby and had gone to Kerema on Thursday to buy betel nuts.
Snr Insp Pakyei said the driver returned to Port Moresby with another man (deceased) with bags of betel nuts and sold them at Erima, bought beer and returned with three others to Kerema on Saturday.
“The driver drove at a high speed overtaking other Kerema-bound vehicles,” Snr Isnp Pakyei said.
“After passing Malalaua station, the driver unsuccessfully negotiated a bend and the vehicle overturned and rolled into a river.”
Snr Insp Pakyei said the three passengers escaped with minor injuries. He said body of the driver was at the Kerema General Hospital morgue and the other body was taken by relatives to their house in Kerema town.
He said driver’s family was contacted and they were arranging to take his body back to Port Moresby.