Remington Eastman, the father of Brian Eastman, the police officer who died in the horrific accident on the Rupert Craig Highway said his death came as a shock to the family and has left them devastated as they had earlier in the day lost another family member.
The father, while speaking to Stabroek News said that at the moment, the family has been trying to cope with the loss of two members of the family. He explained that the news of his son’s death greeted him with shock.
“Well we were home and persons keep calling and telling us of the accident. They saw it on social media and you know how that goes,” the father said when asked how the family learnt of the accident.
Eastman, a Senior Superintendent of the Guyana Police Force and Deputy Director of the Special Branch and his longtime friend Dillon DeRamos, a married father of two and part owner of the Kosmos Grill & Lounge at Movietown at Turkeyen, died after the vehicle in which they were travelling crashed into the fence of Yokohama Trading at Liliendaal, on Tuesday night.
The father explained further, that the family is clueless to the details of the accident and noted that they are awaiting an official report from the police.
“What we know is what you know. What is published in the papers and in the media that is what we know. We are waiting on the police or an eyewitness to tell us what really happened,” the father related.
He explained that the last conversation he and his son had was two hours prior to the accident. In that conversation, the father explained that they were making arrangements to move his mother (his son’s grandmother) from the Georgetown Public Hospital Cooperation mortuary to Merriman’s Funeral Home.
“He was telling me that he will come and help make the arrangements but I told him I will meet him home and that was our last conversation. I didn’t know that would have been the last… we are just trying right now to cope, it is hurting real bad,” the grieving father said.
Stabroek News attempts to contact DeRamos family members were unsuccessful.
One eyewitness told this newspaper that DeRamos who was driving the Lexus GX 470 with registration number PTT 6775 lost control after he swerved to avoid another vehicle which had abruptly changed lanes. The out-of-control vehicle careened through the fence of the car sales establishment.
The two men were reportedly trapped in the mangled vehicle for several minutes before the arrival of emergency services. On arriving, efforts were made to cut the two men out of the vehicle. DeRamos was removed first and pronounced dead at the scene with Eastman being removed about 35 minutes later.
Stabroek News understands that the men have been close friends since attending President’s College together.
Eastman and his grandmother will be laid to rest on Tuesday, the father said.
