Child, 9, among five killed in accidents over weekend

A nine-year-old child is among five people to lose their lives in car crashes over the weekend.

In the first incident, Victor Ryan of La Brea died on May 30 when the driver of the taxi he was in lost control along the southbound lane of the Sir Solomon Hochoy Highway in the vicinity of Charles Street around 11 pm, and crashed into the guardrail on the centre median. He died at the scene.

The nine-year-old was among four people who died instantly when the Hyundai Creta they were travelling in around 11.30 pm on May 31 flipped off the southbound lane of the Sir Solomon Hochoy Highway near Claxton Bay.

The driver, Steve Elder, of Cunupia and back-seat passengers Kizzy Cato of Laventille and Kathlyn Wright also perished. An unidentified male who was in the front passenger seat was the only one to survive the crash but was severely injured and taken to hospital.

The incidents have led the police to urge motorists to exercise greater care, caution and common sense when operating a motor vehicle on public roadways. A June 1 statement warned that poor decision-making and inattentiveness could quickly result in unintended, tragic consequences, including loss of life and limb.

In the statement, senior superintendent of the Traffic and Highway Patrol Branch Lincoln Daly warned motorists to drive more responsibly on the roadways as officers had been responding too often to preventable accidents.

He said many of those involved driver errors, like driving too close behind the vehicle in front, driving too fast for the conditions or being distracted by phone use.

“Drivers need to pay more attention and focused on their driving, and that means obeying road-traffic laws and looking out for fellow drivers.”

Police Road Safety Project Co-ordinator Sgt Brent Batson reminded motorists of the importance of wearing seatbelts as police ticketed 160 people between May 30 and June 1 for failing to wear the life-saving piece of equipment.

“Drivers and passengers need to be aware that an unbelted vehicle occupant that is ejected from a motor vehicle in a road traffic crash has four times the likelihood of being killed. Seatbelts are your driving personal protective equipment to mitigate collision impact on the human body and increase survivability. And, remember, vehicle airbags are designed to effectively protect an occupant with their seatbelt on.”

The police said data from the Traffic and Highway Patrol Branch Roadway Surveillance Unit showed 44 people had lost their lives in road traffic collisions for 2025 to date.

It noted that was a ten per cent reduction when compared to 49 for the same period in 2024.