‘Reckless’ driver turns self in

THE DRIVER of the ill-fated minibus, BPP 2259, that claimed the life of 16-year-old Nirvan Baichu, a student of the Skeldon High School, on the Bengal Public road on Thursday, has turned himself in.According to a police source, the driver hails from Number 69 Village and is said to be in his late 20s.

At about 19:00hrs on Thursday, in the vicinity of the Rambrich Gas Station, minibus BPP 2259 attempted to overtake white Toyota Primo motor car PSS 5063 and came into contact with the right side of the car, pushing it into a parked truck, GPP 8542, before the driver lost control of the bus, which toppled several times before crashing into a concrete fence.

At the time of the accident, the minibus was transporting home students from the Skeldon High and Tagore Memorial Secondary schools from the Schools’ Mashramani Competition held at the Albion Sports Complex earlier in the day.

The injured were rushed to the Port Mourant Hospital by public-spirited citizens, but Baichu was pronounced dead on arrival. The driver of the bus reportedly fled the scene immediately after the accident.

Those injured were Venetta Arjune, 16, of CWC; Chendrania Rambali, 16, of Number 68 Village; Ruth Ramotar, 17, of Number 49 Village; Sabrina James, 16, of Princetown, Corriverton; Lakeram Dhanraj, 16, of CWC, all of Skeldon High; and Natasha Rambally, 14, and Britly Tony, both of Tagore Memorial Secondary.

Most of the injured were later transferred to the New Amsterdam Hospital, where they received treatment and were sent home. However, Rambali and Ramotar were later transferred to the Georgetown Public Hospital. One of them is in the High Dependency Unit while the other is being monitored in the ward.

Meanwhile, at the home of the dead teen, his mother Leena Lakan was being consoled by relatives and friends of the family, as she is still trying to come to grips with the fact that her second to last child is no more. The traumatised mother said Nirvan had asked her to go to the Mash Competition.

She learnt of the accident after a teacher called and informed her.
“After I get the call, my whole body feel numb numb. I feel like something happen. We left home, and when we reach the hospital, they were already taking him to the mortuary,” she recounted.

A traumatised student who had been in the bus said that after the bus came to a stop, the other students were crying out in pain when he noticed the lifeless body of one of the students.

He described that moment as frightening. He is urging drivers to be careful on the roadways and to stop the speeding.

Another student mentioned that the minibus was proceeding at a fast rate and she pleaded with the driver to slow down. She went on to say a few minutes after her request, she felt a strong impact.

Baichu was described by a former teacher and education official of Region Six as a brilliant student, who was going to be someone of status in society if he had lived.

He was a very funny and witty individual who was smart and caring, she said.

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