Against the backdrop of a spike in road incidents including Wednesday’s fatal vehicle collision at Praslin, the President of Saint Lucia’s National Council on Public Transportation (NCOPT), Godfrey Ferdinand, has reiterated a road safety appeal.
The accident at Praslin claimed the life of twenty-eight-year-old Laborie resident, Greg Laurent.
Ferdinand expressed heartfelt condolences to Laurent’s family.
“The individual that passed, his father is my friend and colleague so it’s hitting me hard,” the NCOPT President shared with St. Lucia Times.
Ferdinand emphasised the pressing need for a reevaluation of current road safety measures. “That means we need to look at our operational methods whether these things are caused by mechanical error, human error or road conditions,” he explained.
Ferdinand further highlighted a critical concern regarding traffic enforcement. He underscored the importance of equipping law enforcement with the necessary tools to enhance road safety.
“What is alarming is the council has been asking administrations that the police receive speed guns to prevent persons from driving past the speed limit. It’s been 15 years we have been asking for speed guns as a developing nation,” the NCOPT President told St. Lucia Times.
His call to action was not merely a plea for speed limit enforcement but a broader initiative to understand the root causes of accidents.
“We need to reach a state in our society to know what the cause of an accident was. We are hoping that would send a message so that persons will be more careful on the road,” Ferdinand stated.
In addition to Wednesday’s fatal road incident at Praslin, the Saint Lucia Fire Service (SLFS) recently responded to a series of incidents that resulted in multiple injuries.
On Tuesday, emergency responders attended to a vehicle collision at Marisule, where a minibus collided with a pole, injuring six individuals.
The following day, another accident in Desrameaux led to four additional injuries, while one person declined transport.
So far in 2024, SLFS emergency personnel have made over 577 trauma responses to road incidents.
Another talker. He reminds me of a short thing that used to say “road safety campaign” every time there was a road fatality. He mentioned these words for 3 years and up to now. Lies and more lies and another show of incompetence.