Tragedy struck twice for a New Market Street family yesterday when the hearse carrying the remains of their dead relative was involved in a smash-up on Main Street and the woman’s body was flung out of the coffin and onto the road.

Reports are that the dead woman’s neck broke when she crashed to the road and the coffin was wrecked. The funeral procession which was making its way to Le Repentir cemetery after passing through New Market Street immediately halted and relatives scampered to retrieve the body.

Three members of the funeral procession identified the woman as Kim Babb of Lot 7 New Market Street who passed away a few days ago. The trio who witnessed the incident told Stabroek News that the A & D Funeral home hearse was proceeding west along Quamina Street and when it approached the junction at Main Street, the minibus came out of nowhere and slammed into it.

According to the trio, the impact was so loud that persons living in Tiger Bay heard it. They said the minibus windows cracked up, the hearse sustained damage and the coffin and the body were sent flying onto the road upon impact.

“Kim dead twice, several days ago and today [yesterday]. This woman neck break real bad when she land on the road, people had to fix she up before putting she back into the coffin, which was still standing after all that”, one eyewitness said.

After the woman was back in the coffin, the funeral procession remained on Main Street for a while. A donkey cart was hired and the dead woman was transported to Le Repentir for the burial. Relatives and friends were thrown into further grief.

The eyewitness said persons who gathered at the scene were really upset about the whole incident. They related that the incident was so traumatizing that all three of them opted out of the final stop. According to one woman, “the accident made what was left of the funeral too much to bear”.

Stabroek News was told that the minibus driver was taken into police custody. Last evening broken glass was scattered at the corner of Main and Quamina streets.