Three national days of mourning declared after four students killed in San Ramón
Posted: Wednesday, July 20, 2011 - By Matt Lechuga
Four students died after they were struck by a car during the early morning Wednesday.
Four students were killed Wednesday morning in an accident that occurred in San Rafael de San Ramón, Alajuela, 65 km northwest of San José.
A group of nine senior students from Julio Acosta García High School in San Ramón were hit by a driver in a Toyota Tercel while walking on the side of the road, according to the daily La Nacíon. The newspaper reported that the group had been singing a serenade, a tradition among students in their last year of high school.
Dennis Méndez, Luis Alonso Solís and Angie Miranda, all 18, died at the scene. A fourth victim identified as 18-year-old Iván Elizondo died at Hospital Mexico. President Laura Chinchilla declared three days of mourning in the afternoon.
A fifth student, identified as 17-year-old Joxiny Hidalgo, remains in critical condition, a spokeswoman for Hospital México said.
The accident occurred at approximately 4 a.m.
The Judicial Investigation took the driver, whose last name is Chavarría, into custody. According to La Nación, Chavarría is a 25-year-old prison guard at La Reforma Prison in Alajuela. He was allegedly driving on a license that expired in 2006, his vehicle had a circulation permit from another automobile, and the car’s vehicle inspection sticker was issued for a motorcycle.
Instructions:
1. First, you will read the new posted on the blog related to a recent event of four students who were killed by a drunk driver.
2. When you finish reading answer the following questions as your blog’s comment.
1. What is your perspective or opinion about this pitiful event?
2. What is your opinion about Costa Rican’s laws and punishment in regards to drunk drivers? Do they deserve a harder sentence?
3. As a student of eleventh grade, what suggestions or precautions can you take into account and give to other students when doing these types of activities (serenades) late at night?
My opinion about this is that it’s a terrible situation but the fault is not only of the drunk driver, the teenagers shouldn’t been hanging in the streets at that time of the morning. It was almost the sunrise!
ResponderEliminarAbout the laws and punishment, I think that they aren’t hard enough. Even with the new laws, there’re a lot of drunken people driving in the streets and because of them there’re a lot of innocent people that die every year.
My suggestion for serenades are that everybody has to stay together and never leave the bus, it’s better to spend the night in the place the activity is going to be celebrated and if you’re not going to stay, you should go home immediately. Nowadays the streets are extremely dangerous, so it’s better to stay out in short periods.
My opinion about this event is that it's a terrible disaster, but maybe it happens not just for the irresponsibility of the drunk driver, because that students shouldn't been at that hour in the streets.
ResponderEliminarI think laws in Costa Rica aren't hard enough and for that reason in our country a lot of innocent people has died in car accidents. Laws doesn't punish the responsibles of this disasters in the right way, a lot of drunk drivers are in the streets and even with the new laws they don't understand that driving in that way is not the best option.
My suggestion for the people who are in 11th grade, like us, and they are going to participate in a serenade, is to plan very well what are they gonna do and don't stay out of the bus or in the streets for a long time. Is better to spend the hole night in the place where the serenade is gonna be, than been exposed to an accident, because nowadays the streets are extremely dangerous.
The second comment is from Sofia Esquivel Cordero.
ResponderEliminarI think that this incident is other proof to show how we are with our security and how the laws are applying well. Is really sad to see that people of our age had died in irresponsable hands, they were just having fun and living a mean part of their lifes.
ResponderEliminarAlways the bad ones are the ones who win, they deserves a big punishment, the drunk drivers had killed many people and they go to the jail for a few of months or just get free in some hours. If they drink they must have not to drive, absolutely they shouldn't have a car.
We must stay into the place and don't go in anywhere, isn't a party which any father or adult might be because is for classmates of eleventh grade but it must be in a security place where people could be around and security outside, or maybe have many activities to do, to have the people amusing.
I think it's a very sad news, because, there's not the first time that someone die in the street, and in this case was not one person, was five young, which also were hit by a drunk driver, and irresponsible, something that happens increasingly in our country.
ResponderEliminarI think the laws are not good enough, because if so the problem of road deaths by drunk drivers would be reduced and I think if the penalties were stronger, maybe drivers would think more before driving drunk.
In my opinion we should be responsible and take care not to be on the streets because many drivers are drunk at night or just drive too fast. And also the serenade is an activity to enjoy, but we have to take precautions.
I think it's very sad what happened to these students that they were just enjoying one of the actvidades made in fifth grade school. but the worst is going to lack students do the parents, families and friends of these students and most serious is that these things happen to people who are driving drunk.
ResponderEliminardrunk drivers should have more severe sentence also by the authorities and many more years in jail and not let out even pay much money to put a limit to this situation.
we as students must take measures to prevent this from happening again and be more careful when being on the street, not as much liquor, be careful about the places we visit into and people are going to be accompanied and try to do the very evening serenades hours of the night and go through dark places.