Teen dies in Beetham Highway crash

A night drive ended in tragedy after 19-year-old Kavish Persad collided with a car on the Beetham Highway, Laventille, on Tuesday night.

Police said Persad was driving a white Hyundai Ionic on the eastbound lane of the highway at around 10 pm, when he tried to overtake a brown Mitsubishi vehicle.

Persad instead collided with the back of the car, causing him to veer off the road and crash into the Beetham Water Main, which sent his car airborne before it crashed into a drain.

The Mitsubishi vehicle was pushed into a grassy area at the side of the road but the driver was unharmed.

Motorists and Beetham residents reportedly came to Persad’s assistance, pulling him from the wreckage of the vehicle. However, he was declared dead at the scene shortly after. (See other story)

Persad was the fourth road fatality reported on Tuesday.

The first victim, 29-year-old Jaime Morton, was killed when the car he was driving collided head-on with a maxi taxi on the Southern Main Road, Warrenville, Cunupia, at around 4.40 am.

Hours later, at around 8 am, 48-year-old bus driver Munsaf Khan and passenger Roxanne Phillip, 39, were killed when the bus Khan was driving collided with a van near the Freeport Exit Road along the Sir Solomon Hochoy Highway.

According to data from the TTPS, Persad’s death brought the total number of road fatalities to 76 for the year thus far, compared to 74 for the same period last year.

Guardian Media visited Persad’s family home in Aranguez, San Juan, yesterday, but relatives present said they were unable to comment, noting that any response on the matter would come from Persad’s father, Pundit Maniedeo Persad, who was not at home at the time.

On his Facebook account hours before the accident, the elder Persad had congratulated his son for earning top marks in the Caribbean Advanced Proficiency Examinations (CAPE), commending his achievement of earning five grade Is and a grade II.

Persad was one of several students representing Hillview College during the second season of CNC3’s debate tournament Make Your Point in April 2023.

On their official Facebook account, SWAHA International also extended condolences to the Persad family, describing him as a “wonderful and blessed young Pundit”.

During her appearance on CNC3’s Morning Brew programme yesterday, Arrive Alive president Sharon Inglefield described the crash as “horrific” and called for the introduction of more traffic infrastructure in a bid to prevent further fatalities.

“We’re hoping there were barriers, barriers are imperative along our rivers, along our roadways, guard rails are important, the lack of infrastructure also contributes to fatalities,” she said.

“Too long our roads have been left with a lack of proper infrastructure.”

But even with additional infrastructure, Inglefield said the primary responsibility remained on the part of drivers to exercise caution when on the road. She continued to appeal to drivers to be mindful of others and the different conditions of the road.

“Arrive Alive keeps saying to slow down, maintain your speed. The speed limit is not a target. We need to ensure that we are driving defensively, that we’re looking out for pedestrians and cyclists, that we are ensuring the roads are in perfect condition to maintain the speed posted on the signs. So, we need to adapt our speed to road conditions, especially when the roads are wet.”

She also continued to call for greater police presence on the road to ensure that drivers obey the law.