One man is dead following a vehicular collision that occurred in Scottshead on Christmas Day.
The man has been identified as 44-year-old David Benjamin of Loubiere.
According to reports from police sources, on Wednesday, December 25, 2024, at approximately 9:00 AM, police officers from the Soufriere Police Station, along with scene-of-crime personnel, responded to a report of a fatal vehicular collision in Scottshead.
The collision involved a blue Mitsubishi RVR with the registration number PA3136, owned by Gema Gage of Pointe Michel, that was being driven by 34-year-old Darren Gage of Newtown. He had five passengers with him. Three of the passengers, including Benjamin, sustained serious injuries and were rushed to the Dominica-China Friendship Hospital (DCFH) for medical treatment.
Benjamin was pronounced dead by Dr. Priscilla Bruno at 11:30 AM upon arrival at the hospital, while the other two passengers were admitted for further medical attention.
Reports further indicate that, thus far, the initial investigation suggests that the driver misjudged a bypass and collided with a concrete embankment on the western side of the road.
There is a small section of perhaps 20 feet of the road and wall damaged by the hurricane 7 years ago that the government has failed to repair. This has posed a safety issue for motorists. Of course we hardly consider safety warnings as necessary either. This accident could have been avoided.
Generally, safety is not taken as seriously as it should by the government nor the public.
Many roads are in a serious state of disrepair endangering both the lives of motorists and pedestrians. Work safety measures on construction sites, by haulers\movers of building materials are for the most part lax.
How hard it is for the government to put a road crew in place to traverse different parts of the island to repair and rehabilitate roads that put the lives of commuters in danger? Why not create a hotline in the fitting ministry for the public to call to report the locations of any serious problems in the road.