FOUR DEAD as truck slams into minibus

Mar 07, 2023 News

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Kaieteur News – Four persons, two men and two women were on Monday morning killed after the minibus they were in collided with a truck on the Greenwich Park Public Road, East Bank Essequibo (EBE).

Dead are: Vernon Prowell,50, of Bent Street Wortmanville, Georgetown who was the driver of the minibus and Margaret Kennedy, a 72-year-old of Tuschen; Olga Reddy, a 57-year-old of Parika; and Elvis Charles, a 40-year-old of Ruby, E.B.E who were all passengers of the bus.

According to a police report, around 9:30hrs yesterday, the truck GZZ 2285 was proceeding east along the northern side of Greenwich Park Public Road at a fast rate of speed approaching a pedestrian crossing, while minibus BWW 8364 was proceeding in the opposite direction. The driver of the truck reported to the police that a black motorcar (HD 1708) was proceeding in front of him in the same direction and made a sudden stop at the pedestrian crossing. The driver said upon seeing this, he applied brakes and swerved right to avoid colliding with the motorcar. In the process of doing this, the truck ended up colliding with the right-side front portion of the minibus.

As a result of the impact of the collision, the police stated that passengers in the minibus suffered injuries about their bodies. Passengers Kennedy, Reddy and Charles were rushed to the Leonora Cottage Hospital where they all died while receiving medical treatment, the police reported. The minibus driver and other passengers namely Stella Parhoo, a 73-year-old of Parika, and Severn Austin, a 44-year-old of Den Amstel, were seen and examined by a doctor at Leonora and were transferred to the West Demerara Regional Hospital for further treatment.

Police said Prowell was further transferred to the St Joseph Mercy Hospital, where he succumbed to his injuries while receiving treatment. Other passengers: Shemar Alleyne, a 21-year-old of Tuschen; Selmont Brisport, a  64-year-old of Tuschen; Samuel Ramdas, a 46-year-old of Ruby Backdam, and Junior Jack, a 25-year-old of Tuschen were seen and admitted at the Leonora Cottage Hospital. Police noted a breathalyzer test was conducted on the truck driver where no trace of alcohol was found. The four deceased bodies are presently at Ezekiel Funeral Parlor, awaiting a post-mortem examination. An investigation into the fatal accident has since been launched.

Yesterday’s horrific crash comes at a time when there have been renewed calls for greater enforcement on the roadway to stem the tide of road deaths. The Ministry of Home Affairs recently reported that here has been a 100 percent increase in the number of road fatalities this year in comparison to the same period last year. According to the ministry, statistics show that for the period January 1 to February 18, 2023, 16 persons lost their lives when compared with eight persons in 2022. This represents a 100 percent increase when compared to 2022. The Ministry of Home Affairs noted that pedestrian fatalities increased by 25 percent when compared to the same period last year while approximately 44 percent of motorcyclists were killed during the same period compared to last year. “Comparative data has shown that as of February 18, 2023, 16 persons would have been killed on our roads as a result of 14 accidents, when compared with the same period for 2022 when eight persons died from 7 accidents,” the Ministry said while noting that it is alarming that in 2022, five of the eight persons killed during that period were the most vulnerable classes of road users (2 pedal cyclists, 1 motorcyclist and 2 pedestrians).

Additionally, at February 18, 2023, of the 13 killed the vulnerable classes accounted for 16 (2 pedal cyclists, 7 motorcyclists, 4 pedestrians). Further, in the case of serious accidents, data provided shows that as of February 18, 2023, 41 serious accidents were recorded, while 39 serious accidents occurred during the same period in 2022, indicating a 5 percent increase in serious accidents in 2023 when compared to 2022. Data also clearly indicate that fatal accidents occur primarily on Sundays and Fridays between the hours of 18:00 and 05:59, with male drivers accounting for 81 percent of all deaths.

The Ministry of Home Affairs said it has been able to reduce road deaths by 30 percent in 2021 and 2022 with less than 100 persons killed for the first time in 16 years. “This achievement of the previous two years will be extremely difficult to maintain at the present rate of road fatalities,” the Ministry said.

Meanwhile, the Ministry said that a review of more measures to promote road safety is currently being undertaken through a collaborative effort by the Ministry of Home Affairs, the Guyana Police Force, the Traffic Department, the Guyana Revenue Authority, and the Ministry of Education. Subject Minister, Robeson Benn said that he has noted with grave concern the growing number of road fatalities this year and has urged Guyanese to exercise care and caution when using the road. “This increase in road fatalities appears to be a daily occurrence, and the indications are that reckless driver behaviour, attributable to excessive speeds, driving under the influence of alcohol, driving without due care and attention (or inattentiveness), tailgating, and driving while tired is the common cause,” the ministry said even as it sympathises with those affected.

Weighing on the issue Retired Commissioner of Police, Paul Slowe in a letter to the press said: “It is clear from the press release that the Ministry of Home Affairs is clueless when it comes to the real reasons for the madness on the roads and the measures that should be implemented to address the carnage.” According to Slowe, the “real problem” is the corrupt system that exits when it comes to the issuance of drivers’ licences.

“I will posit that accidents are the end results of a corrupt system, Slowe wrote while adding, “Corruptly providing a drivers’ licence to unqualified persons is akin to providing those persons with a licence to kill”.  To back up his view that there is widespread corruption in the country’s driver learning programme for the issuance of driver’s licence, Slowe provided some stats from a letter published Stabroek News back in 2022. The letter was reportedly penned by the Head of the Force’s Audit and Inspection Unit, Julius Wright and it revealed that some 397 persons did not write the driver’s exam but received pass marks.  Another 79 did not register for the exam but still received pass marks while 21 received pass marks before even writing the exams.

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• Elvis Charles, killed, Olga Reddy, Vernon Prowell

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