THIS past weekend, news of the horrific death of seven-year-old Ciara Benjamin, at Agricola on the East Bank Demerara Highway, grappled many of us.

The young girl was at the highway’s median waiting to cross when, due to a series of unfortunate events, a truck collided with her and pinned her to the median. She subsequently lost her life.

This is a tragic event I’d much rather forget, more so since I was at the scene of the incident. But I personally believe that Ciara’s death is one which should force each and every one of us to be more conscious of road safety.

For context, according to statistics published by the Pan American Health Organisation/ World Health Organisation (PAHO/WHO), deaths from traffic accidents constitute one of the top 10 causes of fatalities in Guyana. Furthermore, it has been identified as the number one cause of death among persons between the ages of five and 14 and the number two cause of death among persons aged 15 to 24.

I would hate to think that it is only at times there are these horrific accidents that we remember to be wary of road safety rules and tips. Being more conscious of these rules ought to help us reduce the number of accidents we see.

Drivers should always be wary of their surroundings when driving. And importantly, they should remember that they should not drive if they are under the influence of alcohol. Occupants of vehicles have a duty to call out drivers for speeding, playing loud music and if they believe that they are driving under the influence. Passengers also ought to obey the law by using seat belts. And pedestrians should remain vigilant and be careful while on the road, especially when vehicular traffic is heavy.

I mean, come on, aren’t these just simple things that we know? Why aren’t we paying more attention to these?

There’s also the concept of negligence. Some reports say that Ciara was crossing the road with her aunt, who was also hit, but luckily escaped unharmed. Other reports allege that the aunt was on her cellphone, while she and Ciara were about to cross the road, and perhaps due to a momentary lapse of judgement, the unfortunate incident occurred and cost the child her life.

Negligence on the roadway is a serious thing. Few things are well-known: Stop, look, then cross; look left, look right, then look left again before crossing, and always pay attention to others on the roadways.

And use pedestrian crossings! It really irks me when persons choose to cross the roads right next to a pedestrian crossing when it is literally right there.

But negligence doesn’t just stem from pedestrians alone. Drivers, too, fail to observe simple traffic rules and do not always take caution into account. It is not uncommon to see a driver ‘jumping’ a traffic light or ‘boring’ a traffic line. How many more lives need to be lost before we stop this lawlessness?

I’ll concede, however, that even if all rules are followed and utmost caution is exercised, accidents do occur. But these are incidents that we can try, as much as reasonably possible, to reduce.

I also think that overpasses are structures that haven’t gotten as much appreciation, as well. I know of four of these structures erected at Houston, Eccles, Peter’s Hall, and Providence- all on the busy East Bank Demerara Highway.

If I’m being candid, I, personally, have not been the most appreciative person of the overpasses. Whenever I’d have to use them, I wouldn’t be too fond of having to climb up all those stairs and then come down again.

But what I do appreciate is that these overpasses provide a safe alternative to crossing the ever-busy Highway (also, I heard that there’s free Wifi on some of them? What a blessing!).

Considering what has happened to Ciara, I think that we could all appreciate the overpasses without minding the little extra effort it takes to use them. I’d like to see that these are constructed in more places, and maybe it wouldn’t be so bad to have those elevators built with them operational.

As simple and easy as it sounds, road safety is something that we all need to pay more attention to. These rules, norms and even the facilities are in place to maintain a semblance of order in society. Every life lost, young or old is honestly one too much.