A visiting brother and sister were killed and three others injured yesterday morning when at the Rockstone/Linden Junction the vehicle they were travelling in had a tyre blowout and toppled several times.
Dead are Raymond Khan, age 64, and Jean Williams, age 60, who were born here but resided in Canada and Trinidad respectively.
Injured are the son of Jean, Leroy ‘Romeo’ Williams, his wife Sandra Williams of Peter’s Hall on the East Bank of Demerara and the driver of the pick-up, Michael Gordon of Georgetown.
“It was around 7am …my brother told me they were travelling when they heard a ‘Pow! Pow! Pow!’ sound from the back left of the vehicle. Then it hit a sand thing and began toppling and every time it toppled it seemed to be coming down more on them,” Julie Williams, the daughter of Jean, told Stabroek News.
She said that her brother related that when the vehicle came to a halt, the driver managed to pull himself from the wreckage and tried assisting the others. Simultaneously, passers-by also stopped and began rendering assistance to the passengers.
However, she said that her brother on seeing the mangled bodies of his mother and uncle knew that they were already dead.
His worst fears were confirmed when they were all rushed to the Linden Hospital Complex (LHC) and Jean and her brother Raymond were pronounced dead.
The injured three were treated by medical personnel at the LHC and discharged except for Sandra Williams who was transferred to the Georgetown Public Hospital.
The brother and sister were on vacation here after being away for several years. They were on their way to Bartica by land as part of planned activities the duo had for this trip to Guyana.
Stabroek News was told that Khan’s wife Bibi Bradshaw, also of Canada, was further traumatised when she went to identify her husband’s body and realized that someone had removed three 22-karat diamond stud earrings that he was wearing. It was said that the jewellery held immense sentimental value as her husband wore them as a symbol of love for the three women in his life, his wife and two daughters. Khan also has two sons who also reside in Canada.
Jean Williams is survived by three children and three grandchildren. She was described as a loving mother, grandmother, sister and friend.
Police at Linden confirmed the deaths saying they occurred at the Rockstone Junction approximately six miles south west of Linden.
According to the police, a telephone call was made to the E Division Headquarters around 8.30 am yesterday, reporting the accident.
The police said that investigations are continuing while an autopsy will be carried out on the brother and sister today.
