Ionian Islands: Road accidents triple in May, with two fatalities and 3,398 violations
Police report more traffic checks and accidents in May 2026, with speeding and lack of helmet use among top violations. Enimerosi archive photo
CORFU. A worrying rise in road accidents was recorded in Hellenic Police data for May 2026 in the Ionian Islands. Two people died, while violations exceeded 3,300, with speeding and failure to wear a helmet ranking as the most common offences.
A concerning increase in road accidents was recorded in May across the Ionian Islands, according to data released by the General Regional Police Directorate of the Ionian Islands. The number of accidents nearly tripled compared to the same month in 2025, while for the first time in a year, two fatal incidents were also recorded.
A total of 27 road accidents occurred in Corfu, Lefkada, Cephalonia, and Zakynthos, compared to just eight in May of the previous year. Of these, two were fatal, one resulted in serious injury, and 24 led to minor injuries.
The total number of people affected rose to 30, up from eight recorded in the same period last year. This includes two deaths, one seriously injured person, and 27 people with minor injuries.
According to the police investigation, the most common causes of the accidents were driver distraction, failure to give way, not maintaining safe following distances, speeding, disregard of traffic signals, and driving into oncoming traffic.
At the same time, traffic police intensified checks across the road network of the Ionian Islands, issuing a total of 3,398 violations. The majority involved speeding (573) and not wearing a protective helmet (535), while there were also 87 violations for not wearing a seatbelt, 50 for mobile phone use while driving, and 46 cases of driving under the influence.
The checks also led to 26 arrests, including nine for drunk driving, eight for driving without a valid licence, and nine for other traffic offences.
ELENI KORONAKI
