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Traffic accidents claimed the lives of 79 people and the same number were injured during Vietnam's recent four-day public holiday, according to authorities.
The number of fatalities was down by 19 compared to last year, while the total number of accidents fell by 12.
On the International Labor Day May 1, the last day of the holiday, 27 people were killed and 33 more were injured in 37 accidents nationwide.
On April 29 and 30, Vietnam’s Reunification Day, 140 people were taken to Viet Duc Hospital in Hanoi, many of whom smelled of alcohol, according to a hospital representative.
The number of patients was twice as many as on a normal day, and many serious cases were transferred from other hospitals, the source said.
Road crashes are a major cause of deaths in Vietnam, killing an average of one person every hour in the first four months this year, according to the General Statistics Office.
The recent holiday weekend was Vietnam's second longest official break this year, after the one-week Lunar New Year holiday. Heavy traffic jams were reported as people flocked to resort towns and migrants left cities for home.
