A 19-year-old cyclist, who was hit by a van while riding along the New Hope, East Bank Demerara Public Road, was in critical condition at the Georgetown Public Hospital (GPH) up to press time.

Omire Wharton of Lot 277 Grove Housing Scheme, East Bank Demerara was returning home from a friend’s house in Friendship when he was hit by a silver van which was reportedly speeding. The driver has been taken into police custody.

“The three of us were riding home and out of nowhere this silver van that was overtaking another vehicle come and lash into he [Wharton],” one of the injured teen’s friends, who witnessed the accident, told Stabroek News.

According to Wharton’s friend, they’d spent a few hours at another friend’s house in Friendship and were returning home shortly after 7pm when the incident occurred.
Wharton was rushed to the Diamond Diagnostic Centre and later transferred to the city hospital shortly before 8 pm. When this newspaper arrived at GPH after 9 pm Wharton’s relatives were gathered outside the Accident and Emergency Room. The teen was taken to a private city hospital for a CT scan.

“They tell us that he got a 50/50 chance,” a woman who identified herself as the injured teen’s aunt said. “Ow God, I feeling it for meh son…I hope he alright cause I don’t know what we gon do.”

The injured teen, according to relatives, remained in critical condition up to 10 pm. Wharton, hospital staff indicated to relatives, would be admitted to the Intensive Care Unit “as soon as doctors did all they could for him”.