Data from Cruz Roja Chapala showed that accidents involving motorcycles and motor scooters are way up this year, and the average age of those injured or killed is dropping especially for women and girls
Cruz Roja Chapala.
Arturo Ortega (Chapala, Jal). – Cruz Roja reports that they are treating 60% more motorcycle accidents this year than in 2020 and that the majority of the victims are men, the victims are getting younger, and the number of women arriving at the emergency room from motorcycle injuries is growing.
A report requested by Semanario Laguna from the Cruz Roja Chapala Nursing Coordination staff showed that, while last year 98 people were treated for motorcycle mishaps, in the first six months of this 2021 there have been 84 motorcycle accident victims in the Chapala emergency room.
The Nursing Coordination Office, headed by María Guadalupe Ávalos Alcántar, projects an increase of more than 50 percent over last year, a prediction that seems tragically on the mark as the first half of 2021is only 14 motorcycle injuries from equaling the total number of those in 2020.
A total of 69 men and 29 women were injured or killed in motorcycle accidents in 2020, while as of June 2021 55 men and 29 women have been brought to the ER from motorcycle accident scenes, the overwhelming majority of them adolescents and young adults. The Cruz Roja Chapala report detailed the age ranges of the patients as from 15 to 25 years old in the case of men and between 20 and 25 in the case of women – a drop in average age of one year for men and five years for women. Females are now seen in the ER from as young as 14 years old and recently a 17-year old girl was killed when her motor scooter crashed and she was not wearing a helmet.
The Nursing Coordinator reported an increase in all injuries related to motorcycle accidents such as contusions, lacerations, fractures in lower and upper extremities, and even craniocerebral trauma, the severity of which depends on the speed at which the accidents occur and the use of protective equipment, especially helmets.
Cruz Roja of Chapala estimated in their report that if the same trend continues, the year could close with 160 victims, which would mean an increase of 60 percent over last year. It also noted that the increase in accidents has raised the costs of the ER and ambulances and the stress on the EMT and nursing staff. Cruz Roja Chapala runs on donations and provides emergency care to accident victims at no cost
Translated by Patrick O’Heffernan
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