A Betsy Ground cane harvester lost his life yesterday on the public road at Betsy Ground, Canje, after the driver of motor vehicle PFF 556 crashed into a utility pole at around 14:45 hrs.
Mahendra Jugisteer, 30, was the fourth man to die in a traffic accident over two days and the third in Berbice.
The driver of the motor vehicle, Devendra Kumar Bakiri, 25, sustained injuries and is currently at the New Amsterdam Hospital receiving medical attention under guard.
According to information reaching Stabroek News, Bakiri was speeding and driving under the influence of alcohol when the accident occurred. He reportedly first hit an electricity pole, toppled several feet and then hit a parked trailer before landing in a trench. Jugisteer, his cousin, was a passenger in the vehicle.
Eyewitnesses said the accident occurred within seconds and after the car halted they saw that two men appeared to be severely injured.
“When we reach nobody ent movin. Is sheer blood all ova,” eyewitness Sidney La Fleur said. The men were rescued and taken to the New Amster-dam Public Hospital where Jugisteer was pronounced dead on arrival.
According to reports, the two men were imbibing in alcohol during the day and were heading home when the accident occurred. A police source said a breathalyzer test on was performed on Bakiri and he was over the legal limit for alcohol consumption.
Jugisteer leaves to mourn his wife, child and other relatives and friends.
At the end of October this year, 113 road fatalities from 104 accidents were recorded in comparison to 85 fatalities from 79 accidents for the same period in 2013; a 33% increase in fatalities.
