UPDATE: Seven confirmed dead in St. Vincent tragedy

People gathered at the site of the tragedy. Photo credit: SVG TV
People gathered at the site of the tragedy. Photo credit: SVG TV

At least seven people, mainly students, have been confirmed dead after a minibus carrying passengers, plunged into the sea in the northwestern section of St. Vincent on Monday morning.

It is reported that five bodies have been recovered from the sea. One person died in hospital and another died while on the way to receive medical treatment.

Circumstances leading to the deadly accident are unknown and it is still unclear how many people were in the minibus.

A large crowd gathered at the site of the crash in an area call Rockgutter as emergency personnel worked through the day but efforts are being affected by rough seas.

Prime Minister, Ralph Gonsalves, said the entire nation is struck by what he described as a “tragedy of national proportion.”

“We all grieve and ask God for guidance and strength as well as we lean on one another,” he said on national radio. “Some of the questions you have are not fully answered, that will come in due time. Right now it is the task of making sure that everyone is accounted for. We cannot yet give up hope because there is hope we can find additional survivors. As inhospitable as the conditions are, we have to hope…and we have to put the pieces back together and to see what we can do to try to ensure that this tragedy does not happen again.”

In light of the accident, Gonsalves has postponed his budget presentation that was scheduled to take place on Monday.

The remains of the minibus
The remains of the minibus

Copyright 2012 Dominica News Online, DURAVISION INC. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or distributed.

Disclaimer: The comments posted do not necessarily reflect the views of DominicaNewsOnline.com and its parent company or any individual staff member. All comments are posted subject to approval by DominicaNewsOnline.com. We never censor based on political or ideological points of view, but we do try to maintain a sensible balance between free speech and responsible moderating.

We will delete comments that:

  • contain any material which violates or infringes the rights of any person, are defamatory or harassing or are purely ad hominem attacks
  • a reasonable person would consider abusive or profane
  • contain material which violates or encourages others to violate any applicable law
  • promote prejudice or prejudicial hatred of any kind
  • refer to people arrested or charged with a crime as though they had been found guilty
  • contain links to "chain letters", pornographic or obscene movies or graphic images
  • are off-topic and/or excessively long

See our full comment/user policy/agreement.

35 Comments

  1. Angel
    January 18, 2015

    many hearts have been broken from this tragedy, innocent souls have been taken , our children are our pride and joy and as parent we know so well the pain of loosing them. My deepest sympathy to all of you parents trust in God, he is in control and remember all the wonderful times you have with your child or children, from the creation of birth to the giving of birth, and then raising them to be the special person each and every one of them are think of the laughter, the love and the joy they brought to your life and never let that go and always remember they would always remain your children. May God bless each and every one of you. my2 Corinthians 1:3-4 “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God.2 Corinthians 1:3-4 “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of…

  2. January 14, 2015

    Very similar situation happened in St Lucia sometime ago…
    How sad…My prayers go out to all concern..

  3. January 13, 2015

    i feel sorry for the parents of this children :cry:

  4. Ben Richards
    January 13, 2015

    Will it take this tragedy for the powers that be to put stricter controls on these drivers?!
    I hope so!
    I always hire a vehicle because I NEVER feel safe in those vans.
    I hear that they do not know the cause of the accident but, I can tell you now…
    TOO FAST.TOO MANY PEOPLE!
    Those drivers have no respect for the people that give them their living.

  5. jnobaptiste
    January 13, 2015

    2015 begins very badly,all we’re hearing is death and terrorists attacks.my deepest sympathy goes to the families of St Vincent

  6. The Facts
    January 12, 2015

    How sad! My sympathy to the families and friends of the deceased; overall, the people of St. Vincent.
    May the souls of the departed rest in peace. Amen! Lord, have mercy!

  7. Malpardee
    January 12, 2015

    This is a time for reflection. We need to love one another and stop all this hatred among each other. You never know if u are coming back home, when u shut this door behind you. Love one another. May the lord bless the souls of these students. I pray to you oh lord that all people who were passengers in this bus, will be recovered. Amen!

  8. Tdot
    January 12, 2015

    St. Vincent you’re in my prayers and thoughts tonight…May the souls Rest In Peace!

  9. Nadia simon
    January 12, 2015

    2015 has not gotten off to a good start at all…terrorist attack in Paris…14 murders so far in Trinidad and now this. It’s really sad.

    • The Facts
      January 14, 2015

      Only yesterday I received an email from T & T informing me of 11 murders. Oh my! Three more? What is occurring in T & T? What is wrong with those murderers? They are murder- hungry? I hope they are caught.

    • The Facts
      January 14, 2015

      Here is the prayer, if DNO will allow it. It could also be prayed for Dominica.

      Unite In Prayer for TRINIDAD & TOBAGO

      Dear Heavenly Father, we come to You today, humbly lifting up our country Trinidad and Tobago. We ask Lord that You remove that dark cloud of crime that has settled over our land.
      We know that with You all things are possible, and trust in Your love for the restoration of Peace, Love and Community in our country that is called by Your name.
      Influence our leaders and people living in the two islands so that they can find an effective solution to restore law and order. We pray that You breathe a fresh breath of Your Holy Spirit over our land and remove all lawlessness, murder, road accidents, immorality and corruption.

      • The Facts
        January 14, 2015

        Continuing –

        Lord because we believe that You are Powerful and Mighty we place Trinidad and Tobago in Your hands and promise that we will do our best and continue to rejoice Your presence in our daily lives to stay focused on You shining a light of holiness upon Your people.
        In thanksgiving we pray to You Father, in Your name AMEN

        “If my people which are called by my name, shall humble themselves and pray and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sins AND HEAL THEIR LAND” ……..Chronicles 7:14

        PS: Please share this Prayer for T&T

        I will add for Dominica and other countries. The entire world is experiencing dilemmas of every sort. We are all feeling it.

  10. January 12, 2015

    felling sad for the family :(

  11. Sad
    January 12, 2015

    heart felt sympathy to the family and friends of this tragic accident

  12. Love All
    January 12, 2015

    Yes I agree that the police need to be vigilant in the way that bus drivers drive it’s passengers because I remember I asked a bus driver to put me down if he continues on his cell phone. I am also concern about the use of the Point Mulatte to Petite Savanna rd for carrying passengers.

  13. dess
    January 12, 2015

    So so sad gods grace and mercy

  14. OneDestiny
    January 12, 2015

    There are no words. Hold strong St.Vincent. Our prayers are with you.

  15. jamma
    January 12, 2015

    Looking at the area, it looks eerily similar to the bayfront at Champagne after Pointe Michel (heading south) or before (heading north)… similar meaning, above the sea, and NO SEA WALL…

    My heart goes out to the ppl of St. Vincent and the grieving families. But over and over, I’ve battled with the thought of something like that happening at Champagne. I pray the Good Lord watch over us, and hope the people responsible make the sea wall at Champagne up to road level….. the sea wall at champagne, is way below the actual road, that a vehicle can simply slide off with no resistance against it….

  16. Dominican
    January 12, 2015

    May the deceased rest in peace.

  17. January 12, 2015

    The Lord giveth and he taketh and as much questions we have we cannot never ask him why? He knows it all. Hope the families find comfort in the Lord for only he alone knows what they are going through righ now. In time the pain will subside. May they rest in peace.

    • Jane Askin
      January 13, 2015

      This is such a horrible thing to say! The Bible does NOT teach that! James 1:13 says clearly God does not cause evil to happen. That statement that the “Lord taketh” was made by Job BEFORE the prophet Elihu CORRECTED him and said “far be it for the true God to act wickedly” Job 34:10. The first chapters of Job show plainly who was behind his suffering, including the death of his children. What a lie preachers tell, no comfort! 1 John 5:19 shows the wicked one is in control of the world and THAT is why bad things happen. Which is why we pray for God’s kingdom to come to remove him. Until then we have comfort in knowing the bible talks about a hope for the dead. Please, please stop spreading that lie!

  18. i must speak
    January 12, 2015

    omg this is sooo sad :(
    the families must be devastated!

  19. January 12, 2015

    I would like Traffic Dept in D/ca in collaboration with Government to look into the manner in which our bus drivers are driving on road with passengers on board . The lives of your passengers are important and they’re surely not toys or machines . Just look at the remains of steel , far more for the deceased . We cannot wait until tragedies occur to implement life saving policies . Whilst investigations are still ongoing which off course , the circumstances leading to this tragedy is not yet determined , face it what else can we expect but callous driving ? Condolences going out to the relatives and friends of the deceased . May God strengthen you all in this time of tragedy .

    • Fedup
      January 12, 2015

      sooo true!!! All dog and cat turn bus driver now!!

      • January 12, 2015

        so true some of them do not fit the criteria to be bus drivers . to transport tourist you must be certified, some of the buses are not fit to transport human beings. bad tires, bad shocks , faulty gears & brakes and bad manners to go with it all. the rascals.

      • January 12, 2015

        so true some of them do not fit the criteria to be bus drivers . to transport tourist you must be certified, some of the buses are not fit to transport human beings. bad tires, bad shocks , faulty gears & brakes and bad manners to go with it all. the rascals. and when the police is out doing traffic checks they disappear from the road because their driver’s license , vehicle license & insurance is not valid they have no respect for the local passengers . coshon mowon

    • Dominican to bone
      January 12, 2015

      that y i do not travel on those jen ti tache,i kno it not easy to get a C license which is needed to drive passenger buses

    • Jeffrey
      January 13, 2015

      Gorillas

      I agree with your comments.

      There are a few bus drivers from Scotts Head who believe that they are driving on a Grand Prix circuit. These guys are driving too fast and too dangerously on the Pointe Mitchel/Soufriere Road and they do not sound their horns when they are approaching corners.

      Guys Lewis Hamilton you are not! So, stop risking your passengers’ lives.

    • Olutoye Walrond
      January 13, 2015

      I’ve never travelled in St. Vincent, even though I’ve been there, but I understand your drivers really fly on those roads in the hilly areas. This is total madness! What sane person would speed on a road flanked by a ravine? And to make matters worse the roads have no barriers. SLOW DOWN! What is the point of speeding if you are not going to make it? It didn’t need the loss of seven lives to send you that message. Use your COMMON SENSE!

  20. Delia
    January 12, 2015

    My prayers are with the people of St. Vincent and the Grenadines, especially the familiies of the victims. May God grant you solace in this time of grief and sadness.

  21. bev
    January 12, 2015

    sad my heart goes out to their families

  22. The voice of God?
    January 12, 2015

    So very sad. May the good Lord grant grace and strength to family members. I hope there are survivors though the picture above leads me to think of the worse.

  23. sorry
    January 12, 2015

    oh my God! look upon your ppl Lord Jesus

  24. Kelsa Raphael
    January 12, 2015

    This is a very sad moment

  25. grandson
    January 12, 2015

    Very sad indeed…

Post a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

:) :-D :wink: :( 8-O :lol: :-| :cry: 8) :-? :-P :-x :?: :oops: :twisted: :mrgreen: more »

 characters available