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One female student was killed and 13 were injured when the van they were traveling in veered off the main road in Mahail, province, on Friday.
The official spokesman of the Red Crescent in Asir, Ahmed Ibrahim Asiri, said that the operations room received information of the accident at 7:40 a.m. on Friday and four rescue teams were immediately dispatched to the site.
According to reports, the van skidded off Jeddah Road near Al-Sina’ya and crashed into the median. Asiri said that the teams rescued seven people while citizens helped transfer five wounded individuals to Mahail Hospital before the rescue teams arrived at the scene. The student died on the way to hospital while another was severely injured. The other passengers suffered moderate to light injuries and were taken to Mahail Hospital by ambulances.
The van’s driver who was mildly injured and refused to be taken to hospital was inspected and given treatment at the site.
Asiri called on drivers to exercise caution while driving, abide by traffic rules and be prepared for any untoward event.

Police crackdown
Meanwhile, Riyadh police announced Thursday that it had booked 213 school minibuses for violating traffic safety rules and arrested the drivers. The crackdown came in the wake of a major traffic accident involving a minibus in which a number of Saudi female teachers died on their way to school.
The accident prompted the Ministry of Education to take up the matter with the Riyadh traffic police for deterrent measures.
They carried out an intensive campaign this week to ensure that the vehicles carrying students and teachers have the operating licenses and safety equipment for handling any emergency.
The campaign, according to the police, seeks to ensure the safety of travelers who are packed in vehicles exceeding their seating capacity. They also checked the driver’s license, his qualification and whether they adhere to the speed limit on highways and city roads.
Earlier, there were some reports on social media indicating that in one case a school bus was found speeding at 170 km per hour in the morning rush hour.
Those arrested were also found driving without licenses and exceeding the speed limit. They had also modified their buses by removing seats and installing curtains to conceal the number of passengers.
The traffic patrols went into action only after the teachers and students had reached their destination so as to avoid delaying them.