Top traffic cop: What more can we do?

ALTHOUGH TRAFFIC police have implemented stringent measures to prevent carnage on the nation’s roads, fatal accidents continue to occur with two deaths on Saturday night pushing the number of road fatalities to five for the weekend and a total of 78 for the year.

“What more can we do?” Assistant Commissioner of Police (Mobile) Deochan Gosine asked yesterday as he renewed his appeal to the public to obey the highway code. Gosine told Newsday well organised measures were put in place for the Point Fortin Borough Day celebrations with extra traffic patrols. The senior officer added that there were several road blocks and road checks, but they were apparently to no avail, since two of the five weekend victims were on the way to the Borough Day celebrations. “These accidents are consistent with a combination of speed, inexperience, drugs and drinks, selfishness and that’s the reality,” Gosine said.

These five weekend deaths bring to ten, the number of people to have died from April 28 to present. Last Monday, five people died following a smash-up at the Mausica intersection and the Churchill Roosevelt Highway. The victims in that accident are WASA employee Natasha Marcano, Amalgamated security officer John Solomon Jr., and Venezuelans Sudheyl Christina Sanchez, Andres Jiminez and Carolina Perdomo, all of whom were studying English here. In the latest road fatalities, which occurred Saturday night,  Randolph Goorasingh, 24, of Mount Pleasant Road, Arima and passenger Ian Mohammed, 23, of Brazil Village, Talparo, died at the San Fernando General Hospital (SFGH) following a vehicular accident on the South Trunk Road.  

Two other passengers in the car, Shazam Aliram, 18, of Talparo Main Road, Brazil; Jeewan Narine, 21, of Brazil Village, Brazil; and Fareed Ali, 18, of Hindustan Road, New Grant, were up to late yesterday warded in serious condition at the hospital The fatal accident occurred at around 11.40 pm Saturday, while Goorasingh was driving his car in a westerly direction along the South Trunk Road. After passing the Godineau Bridge in South Oropouche, Goorasingh lost control of the vehicle which swerved to the right and slammed into a Toyota HiLux on the opposite side of the road. The driver of the Toyota vehicle, Patrick Husten, 45, of Ramien Street, Morvant, and three passengers - Sharon Bowen, 39, of Nutmeg Drive, Santa Rosa Heights, Arima; Joan Reid, 48, of Brooklyn, New York and Kenneth Clarke, 50, of Francis Street, Tunapuna, were returning from the Borough Day celebrations in Point Fortin. They were treated for minor injuries at hospital.

On Friday night three men died in separate fatal accidents.  Two of the victims, Sheldon Patrice, 36, of Twelfth Street, Barataria, and Frankie Dennis, 64, a WASA retiree of Eastern Quarry, Laventille, were knocked down after they were allegedly chased by Beetham bandits.  Culprits in those incidents could be charged with murder, police said. In the other road fatality on Friday, Valencia resident Wendell George, 28, of Cyppe Drive, was driving west on the Churchill Roosevelt Highway, Wallerfield, in an area identified as a “black spot” by ACP Gosine. A tyre blew and George lost control of his vehicle, which ended up in a ditch on the southern side of the road. Three other passengers were in the vehicle with George.  They were identified as Jimmy Hernandez, 28, formerly of La Horquetta, who now resides in New York, Keston Murray, 25, of Foster Road, Sangre Grande, and Ronald Alleyne, 23, of Valencia Junction. All four were taken to the Arima Health Facility then later transferred to the Port-of-Spain General Hospital where George died. Murray and Hernandez were treated and discharged, while up to late yesterday Alleyne was in a stable condition at hospital. Investigations are continuing in all the accidents.