A Diamond, East Bank Demerara man lost his life after the Canter truck he was travelling in slammed into a concrete fence at Number 4 Village, West Berbice yesterday morning.
Ryan Ahmad Rafeek, 26, was pronounced dead on arrival at the Fort Wellington Hospital while his brother, Neil Rafeek, 34, who was driving, escaped with minor injuries. He was taken into custody at the Fort Wellington Police Station after receiving medical attention.
Police yesterday said the Canter, GLL 7891, was allegedly “travelling at a fast rate” along the roadway. Further, the police noted that it is alleged that the driver lost control of the vehicle, which ran off the road and struck a concrete fence. The driver of the vehicle is in police custody assisting with the investigations, the police added.
The accident occurred at around 7:30 am. Ryan was seated at the passenger side window while another man, Shivnarine Shivraj, 34, of Barr Street, Kitty, who was sitting in the middle, complained of pain to his head and shoulder. He was taken to Georgetown for tests to be carried out.
The devastated Neil told Stabroek News that they were on their way to the Corentyne when he skidded on mud that was on the road and the tray of the truck started to sway. “I couldn’t do anything more than to hold onto the steering and let the vehicle go…. If not it woulda turn over,” he said.
Shivraj recalled that the road was wet and the driver applied brake and the vehicle started to skid. He said they left home around 6 am and the driver was going at about 60 Mph. However residents disputed that because of the extent of the damage to the fence.
Ernestine Johnson, a pensioner whose fence the truck slammed into, was the mother of Joshua Johnson, 32, a mason who was one of six persons who perished in the accident at Mahaica on November 21. She said when she heard the loud noise she started to scream hysterically for Joshua’s son, five-year-old, Jamal and was relieved after realising that he was safe.
She said though that she was still shaken after the accident. Her daughter, Monica Johnson, who came from Antigua for Joshua’s funeral, told this newspaper that she heard a relative, Metra shouting, “‘Look! Look! Look! Look wah going on.’ When we look we saw the truck coming towards the fence.” She said several persons ran to render assistance to the badly wounded Ryan, while the driver and Shivraj came out of the vehicle on their own.
Residents stopped a passing GuySuCo truck which took the men to the hospital. Monica said too that, “We are very distraught over this accident because only the other day our brother died in an accident.” Her sister-in-law said she “ran out of the bathroom screaming.” She said the accident brought back horrible memories of what happened to Joshua, emphasizing that he had built the fence.
Earlier this week, police announced that road fatalities this year have already surpassed last year’s tally, with 109 persons dying on the roadways to date compared to 104 for the same period last year. Speeding was cited as the major cause of fatal accidents.
