Teen remains hospitalised

Fatal Ogle road accident…

Sunil Sukhnandan
Sunil Sukhnandan

-family in need of further assistance

Venisha Sukhnandan, the 17-year-old girl who was struck by a car at Ogle three weeks ago in an accident which resulted in the death of her brother, remains hospitalised but has made significant progress in her recovery.

Speaking to Stabroek News yesterday, the girl’s mother, Radica Narine, related that her daughter was still admitted at the Georgetown Public Hospital (GPH), but has made significant progress and is expected to be discharged soon.

“She’s coming around. She’s still in the hospital but now she’s conscious and talking and what’s not. The doctors said that she got a broken arm, foot, and something wrong with her hips. She’s coming around but she can’t move around yet and they said that she might get discharged soon,” Narine explained.

On September 13, Venisha was riding with her seven-year-old brother, Sunil, when they were hit by a car which was allegedly being driven at a fast rate. They were rushed to the GPH, where Sunil was pronounced dead on arrival and Venisha was admitted into the Intensive Care Unit. Following the accident, the driver was taken into police custody and later released on $75,000 station bail. She subsequently offered the family compensation, which they have not accepted. A lawyer is now assisting them with the case.

Yesterday, Narine was tending to four of her children at their home in Ogle North, a small distance away from the Ogle seawall. The family is currently squatting in a small makeshift shack on the land. Small shacks dot the area, which has become home for fishermen who ply their trade in the area. The southernmost one, houses the family. Narine and her husband, Sohan Sukhnandan, along with nine other children ranging from 7 to 18 years, all live in the tiny shack and have pleaded for assistance from the public over the last three weeks.

Narine explained that while they have been grateful for all of the help they have received so far, they are pleading for some more. She said that when her daughter returns home from the hospital, she will not be able to provide the necessary items to support her.

“She gon can’t move, move when she come so we want get her she own bed, and plus, she will need other things to recover properly and we still asking the public to lend we some more assistance with like food stuff and them things,” Narine said.

She related that currently, she is not working and her husband, who is a fisherman by trade, has not been able to work for the last two weeks because of the death of their son.

The family is also asking the public to be wary of whom they liaison with to send assistance to them since they have been taken advantage of by some persons who acted on their behalf to collect donations but never turned up to give it to them.

Anyone willing to help the family can contact them directly on 672-6196 and 604 4046.