PORT-OF-SPAIN,
Trinidad, Friday June 22, 2012 – A 24-year-old Trinidadian has been discharged
from hospital into police custody after ploughing into a Caura bar and killing
five people on Tuesday. The man, who
reportedly failed a breathalyser test about an hour after the accident, now
faces charges of drunk driving and motor manslaughter.
Dead
are Shayaz Khan, 25, of #8 McKenzie Street, Frederick Settlement, Caroni, and
his mother Christine Khan, 51, of the same address; Arun Ajay, 22, of #26 Peas
Street, Caura Road, El Dorado; Harrilal Mongroo, 30, of #54 Maraj Street, Five
Rivers, Arouca, and Shiva Bharat, 28, of St Joseph.
Autopsies
were subsequently conducted at the Forensic Science Centre in St James.
The
carnage reportedly unfolded at around 5:30am shortly after the man, driving his
cousin’s Nissan Almera, left a bar on the Eastern Main Road with four
passengers: his brother, a male friend and two young women.
According
to police, the driver was proceeding east along the Eastern Main Road when he
pulled to his right at Caura Junction to avoid colliding with another vehicle,
a white Corolla, which was exiting Caura Royal Road.
The
Nissan went on to strike a traffic light pole and then ran into the five
victims outside the Palance Bar, which is located on the southern side of Caura
Junction.
District
Medical Officer (DMO) Satyanarayana Uppalapati first pronounced two people dead
and then, when the vehicle was pulled away from the extensively damaged bar by
a wrecker, three more bodies were discovered crushed below it. All three were
also pronounced dead by the DMO.
Three
other people injured in the bloodbath were taken to the Arima Health Facility
for treatment. Akela Alleyne, 19, suffered a broken hip, while Anika Small and
Ian Joseph were treated and discharged.
The
driver complained to the police of serious pains and was taken to the Eric
Williams Medical Sciences Complex (EWMSC) for treatment. He was treated for
minor injuries.
Owner
of Palance Bar, Ramesh Sookraj, was on the premises when the accident occurred.
"Careless
and reckless driving cause innocent people to lose their lives. The man coming
up the road is either he sleep away or he couldn't control the speed of the
car. He ran into the bar from the end of the culvert and lick down
everybody," Sookraj told the press.
Sookraj
went on to say that he was surprised that the driver came out "without a
scratch" and proceeded to tell him that he did not have to worry about the
damage and that he would "fix everything".
He
added that the driver was not even concerned or maybe unaware that he had just
killed five people.
Senior
Superintendent and head of the Northern Division David Abraham and Senior
Superintendent and second-in-command Otneil Williams were at the scene of the
accident.
Williams
said road deaths are on the increase because people continue to drink and
drive. He urged citizens to designate a driver if they desire to consume
alcohol.
Abraham
said that policing has been heightened on the nation's roads in the Northern
Division, but he noted that the police cannot be on "every street in the
Northern Division".
"We
are warning drivers to refrain from drinking alcohol and driving on the
roadway. The advice I have for motorists is if you know you're drinking alcohol
stay at home, don't come out on the roadway and drive," he urged.
Earlier
this month, Transport Minister Devant Maharaj announced that Cabinet approved a
$5 million awareness programme aimed at reducing road carnage.
The
minister said the National Road Safety Council met on two occasions and
reviewed campaigns submitted by an advertising agency.
"It
is unfortunate that people are not learning from the road fatalities. I think
some bar owners who sell alcohol should exercise some kind of discretion and
control who they sell alcohol to," Maharaj added.
Source:http://www.caribbean360.com/index.php/news/trinidad_tobago_news/591304.html#ixzz1zHjztOix
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