Surveillance camera footage confirms that the Route 31 minibus that collided with a car last Saturday along the Nismes, West Bank Demerara public road, resulting in four deaths, was speeding at the time.
The accident, which occurred in the vicinity of a gas station, involved a minibus, BYY 2981 and a car PTT 691. Police have said that the minibus was proceeding north along the western carriageway at a fast rate of speed. The car, meanwhile, was exiting the gas station in a south eastern direction in the path of the bus.
The collision resulted in the deaths of Ayesha Sealey, 28; the driver of the car, Paul Glen, 52; Maria Bisnauth, 12, and Zavira Jona, 22.
CCTV footage taken from cameras at the gas station shows the car being driven onto the main road. Seconds after the car attempted to turn onto the eastern lane of the road, the speeding bus collided with it, causing both vehicles to turn turtle and land in a nearby drain.
A little girl immediately emerged from the wreckage and appeared to not be badly injured. However, this newspaper has learned that the child, who is said to be seven years old, suffered a broken arm along with other injuries.
It was noted that up to Monday afternoon, another passenger, Mark Anthony, was said to be receiving treatment in the Accident and Emergency section of the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC).
Following the accident, injured persons were taken to the West Demerara Regional Hospital (WDRH) and some were transferred to the GPHC.
One of the injured, Keisha Washington, 32, of Stanleytown, West Bank Demerara, was a passenger in the front seat of the said minibus. The woman, who is currently a patient at the GPHC, recalled that she was seated next to Jona who died following the accident.
According to Washington, following the collision, Jona was unable to escape as she appeared to be trapped by her seatbelt.
While earlier reports indicated that the driver of the car was the only occupant of that vehicle, at least one man, Ramkumar Boodram, has since been identified as a passenger in the car at the time. According to Boodram’s son, Boodnarine Boodram, he found out that four persons were in the car along with the driver, who was identified as Paul Glen.
He noted that his father was in the front seat of the car and is currently nursing multiple injuries, including a broken hip. The man said that his father, who had to be pulled from the car, had to undergo surgery. He further related that he and other family members were not aware that he was involved in the accident until the next day. The younger Boodram also indicated that one of his father’s friends, who he only knows as “Ganesh,” was also a passenger of the car.
Meanwhile, there is also considerable speculation as to the identity of the driver of the minibus. While it was initially reported that Hensley Allen was the driver of the minibus, a number of persons who were said to be passengers of the bus have all indicated that they were not aware of who was driving the bus at the time, including Washington, who was the passenger in the middle front seat.
