Patentia girl, 7, dies in hit and run

Seven-year-old Althea Clement died on Sunday evening, after she and her father were struck down by a car in a hit and run on the Wales Public Road, West Bank Demerara.

Cedric Clement, 50, of Lot 20 Patentia Housing Scheme, West Bank Demerara, is now a patient at the Georgetown Public Hospital, where he underwent surgeries for injuries he sustained to his left leg and his left hand. He lost a finger.

Cedric Clement, as he lay in his bed at the Georgetown Public Hospital yesterday, recalling the accident that claimed his daughter’s life.

From his hospital bed, he told Stabroek News that the accident occurred around 6 pm, while he and his daughter were on their way home. He said he noticed a speeding motorcar approaching and, nervous at the sight of the vehicle, he stopped opposite a dispensary to ensure that his daughter was safely in the corner. As the vehicle got closer, Clement recalled, he placed his daughter behind him but it was to no avail as the car slammed into them. Althea died on the spot.

“He was driving fast and I suspect he lose control of the vehicle,” Clement weakly said. “He didn’t get to run over me because I toppled over into the trench. Although I was in and out of consciousness, I see when he jump out the car and run away,” he added.

Clement said he recognised the driver but he could not recall the man’s name. Police said yesterday that the driver is in custody, assisting with investigations.

According to the grieving man, “I tried my best to save [Althea] but it de too close.” The girl’s body is now at Ezekiel’s Funeral Parlour, where Clement is employed. “I don’t want them to bury her without me there,” he told a relative yesterday.