7 News Belize

Two Men Killed In Hit And Run’s On Phillip Goldson Highway
posted (August 14, 2017)
On Friday night's news we told you about the road safety project on the Western highway which brought down the accident rate significantly since 2013. In fact, from January to July 2017, there had only been one fatality between Belize City and Belmopan.

Well, tonight - just like that - the accident rate had trebled - and there are two more fatalities to report, right on the stretch of road between miles 38 and 44.

The first happened on Saturday morning at 1:00 am. That's when Oscar Cermenio was killed in a hit and run within Cotton Tree Village at mile 44. We spoke to the first responder to the accident who saw him lying in the road.

Voice of: Michelle Sutherland, First to arrive on accident scene
"I flew pass something resembling a body on the road and because I was driving fast I had to turn back and reverse the vehicle to see what it was and when I got outside, it was the body of a male person lying face down in the middle of the road. He was still alive. He had blood coming out of his mouth and had a gash in the center of his chest, so I quickly called the police and they responded shortly after and we were able to assist them in turning over the gentleman from his position that he was seen lying on."

Jules Vasquez, reporter
"Did you see any other vehicle in the area?"

Voice of: Michelle Sutherland
"Well that's the thing I was wondering because police didn't ask me anything and when I arrived on the scene, I look through my rear window and I could have seen a vehicle a little ways up from me. I think it was the vehicle who knocked the guy down."

Jules Vasquez, reporter
"You think that because?"

Voice of: Michelle Sutherland
"Because on the scene we found a piece of bumper from the vehicle. It was a red in color bumper and the same vehicle that we saw appears to have been a red Toyota Corolla car I would say. But when the vehicle saw that I had stopped - it was off the road when I stopped. When the vehicle saw me stopping, that quickly continued in their direction that they were going. I couldn't imagine anybody would do somebody that and just leave him stranded on the road like that."

Sutherland tells us that police came quickly and the ambulance shortly after. He was rushed to the KHMH where he lived for a few hours, and died at about 5:15 AM. His family has a theory that he wasn't knocked down, but that he may have been thrown on the road.

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