RESIDENTS of the  Omar sector, of Burunga, Arraijan who were awakened at 3.30 am on Saturday July 29 by the sound of a crashing vehicle tried but failed to rescue the driver trapped inside at the bottom of a gully.

When paramedics arrived  Alejandro Franco, 45, was dead.

He  is believed to have fallen asleep at the wheel. He was traffic fatality  number 253 so far this year with accidents running at a daily average of 125 with well over 1,000 needing hospital treatment.

Critical injuries
On Sunday morning five young people were critically injured in a traffic accident in Santiago,  Veraguas.

They were traveling  to La Mata de Santiago when the driver lost control  while passing under a bridge.

TVN reports that the young people were apparently under the influence of, alcohol.