The death of a teenage girl who was struck down by a car sparked protests at Letter Kenny, Corentyne last night as residents expressed frustration at the frequency of fatal accidents even as they discovered a toy gun and fake identification cards in the vehicle which the irate villagers subsequently set afire.
Dead is Reena Devi Singh called ‘Asha’ and ‘Ashmanie’, 18, of Letter Kenny Village. The teenager had just gotten off a minibus when she was struck down by a blue Toyota car, PMM 3080, at about 5pm yesterday. She was rushed to the Port Mourant hospital where she succumbed as a result of the injuries sustained.
The incident sparked protests which eventually saw furious residents torching the car. Police said that the driver of the car is in custody assisting with investigations.
Eyewitnesses told Stabroek News that Singh was crossing from the northern side of the road trying to get to the southern side when she was struck down by the speeding car. One resident, Ramdat Singh recalled that he was drinking a beer when he noticed Singh crossing the road at the four corners junction and “the car come full speed, hit the girl and swerve into the trench” on the southern side of the road.
The man explained that after the girl was struck, she landed approximately two hundred feet away from the point of impact. He recalled that he rushed to the scene and saw persons including the driver of the car pick up the girl and rushed her to the hospital. Another eyewitness said that following the crash, the driver went to Singh and placed his hands on her neck in what appeared to be an attempt to check her pulse.
At the time of the accident, it was reported that there were three passengers inside the car and they disappeared from the scene moments after.
When Stabroek News arrived on the scene, hundreds of residents had converged on the road and expressed disgust at the regular fatal road accidents on the Corentyne Public Road. Subsequently, they became irate after they found a bag containing a toy gun, a tope and three fake identification cards along with clothing. The toy gun was destroyed by a resident.
As the residents vented their disgust, they surrounded the vehicle and declared that they were going to damage it since too many road accidents occur, families suffer and drivers go free. After someone blurted out that the car belonged to a policeman – an allegation which later proved to be false – the residents turned a deaf ear to police ranks on the scene and after minutes of debating their next move, the furious crowd pushed the car into the canal.
They then pulled it out and proceeded to parade the vehicle on the road which resulted in traffic being obstructed. From that point, the residents took the car to an empty plot of land which once housed the Letter Kenny market and lit it afire.
Members of the Guyana Fire Service arrived on the scene moments before the car was ignited but were restricted from preventing fire since the residents threatened to damage the fire service vehicle as well. It was also explained that due to the poor crowd control by the few police ranks on hand, the fire service could not have taken steps to put out the fire.
Furthermore, the residents after minutes of “cooling down” turned up at the Whim Police Station where the driver was being held and demanded his name and to see him. They also vented their frustration during a half-hour protest. The officer in charge of the station attempted to speak to the crowd and calm them but they erupted again and he could not be heard. The protesters eventually left the station and it returned to a state of normalcy.
Stabroek News subsequently learnt that the car does not belong to a police rank and spoke to the owner who revealed that her nephew was driving at the time of the accident. She explained that someone had called to rent the car and her nephew was on his way to take the car to the man when they became involved in the accident.
The woman said that she did not know what transpired and is unaware of the bag which was found inside the car. However, she expressed dissatisfaction at the manner in which the situation was handled. She said that she was in shock and disbelief after seeing her car being damaged. She called for justice to be done.
Singh leaves to mourn her parents, a brother and other family and friends. Police are continuing their investigations.
