(Trinidad Guardian) In an attempt to escape the gridlock traffic which snarled all routes into and out of the capital city on Saturday, a delivery driver lost his life after he attempted to use an alternative route.
A few hours after he collected a shipment of premium alcoholic drinks from his employer to be delivered to Angostura’s Solera branch in Woodbrook, Johnald Smith lost control of the loaded vehicle and careened off a precipice along the Lady Young Road, Morvant.
The fatal accident which occurred around 12.05 pm in the vicinity of the Hilton Trinidad, also led to a major traffic jam along the Lady Young Road as motorists strained to catch a glimpse of the rescue work being done by police and fire officers.
Smith, 34, of Arouca who was employed with ICR Transport Solutions Ltd, Kelly Village, Caroni, died as he attempted to jump from the truck as it skidded off the road.
His loader, 19-year-old Kerry Mclaren, of Morvant, managed to escape.
Up to 4 pm Saturday, Mclaren remained at the Port-of-Spain General Hospital nursing minor injuries.
Speaking with Sunday Guardian at the scene, Mclaren cried as he was being attended to by Emergency Medical Technicians Don Brown and Lynford Lewis.
Confirming Smith had used the alternative route in an attempt to reach their destination quicker, Mclaren said, “As he rounded the corner by Hilton, we were talking about the traffic jam and how the roads were packed with cars heading into Port-of-Spain.”
Mclaren, who has been employed with the company for the past year, said he only began working with Smith for the past four months.
He described Smith as a man who loved football and had been excited to view Saturday’s English Premiership matches.
Mclaren said Smith was “reliable and dependable…he never took any chances.”
Minutes after the accident occurred, fire tenders from the Wrightson Road Fire Station and the Belmont Fire Stations responded immediately. They also had to call for backup.
Meanwhile, police officers from the Belmont Police Station including PCs Bazzey and Horsford had their hands full ensuring order and keeping curious on-lookers at bay.
Additionally, they were forced to call for help after nearby residents began looting boxes of damaged items as they accessed the wreck site via routes near and around the Belmont Secondary School.