NASSAU, BAHAMAS – A female pedestrian is dead and a male is currently listed in critical condition, following a hit-and-run accident that occurred on Monday morning on Sealink Drive off East Street South in the area of South Beach Estates.
According to Chief Supt. Craig Stubbs, the officer in charge of the police Traffic Division, shortly after 6:30 a.m. on Monday, the police control room received a report of a traffic accident that was witnessed by residents living on Sealink Drive.
“A Nissan Cube struck two pedestrians that were walking along the Sealink corridor in a western direction. The car then continued to travel east along Sealink Drive, failing to remain stationary,” Supt. Stubbs said.
“The residents from that area would have followed the vehicle and continued communication with the police control room where the vehicle would have been abandoned in the Bougainvillea Boulevard area.
“On the scene, we learned that the female pedestrian had expired [and] the male pedestrian was transported by EMS to the Princess Margaret Hospital, where we know he is listed in critical condition in the ICU unit.”
Supt. Stubbs said residents in the area followed the driver after she fled the scene but the vehicle was found abandoned in the yard of a residence on Bougainvillea Boulevard, South Beach Estates.
Supt. Stubbs said that shortly after 8:00 a.m. on Monday, officers were able to contact a relative of the driver and she has since been taken into custody.
“She is now at the Police Traffic Division assisting police with investigations,” Supt. Stubbs said.
“From what I heard she is reporting some injuries but we will not know the extent of her injuries until she has been seen by a medical practitioner and [they are] listed as serious or minor injuries.”
When asked whether any formal identification of the victim had been made, Stubbs said, “No, but we are following some significant leads as to who the two pedestrians are.”
Residents of the South Beach community told Eyewitness News Online that the pedestrians are known to the area and are always walking.
Meanwhile Supt. Stubbs said yesterday’s accident could have been the result of distracted driving.
“Based on the initial reports from our witnesses, it appears as though it could be the result of a distracted driver because she would have travelled from the Eastbound lane on the northern side and cross into the Westbound lane on the southern side where she would have made contact with those two pedestrians,” Supt. Stubbs explained.
He further revealed that the driver is believed to be between 25 – 30 years of age, but as for the two victims, the only information he could confirm at yesterday’s scene was that they were both adults.
Meanwhile Supt. Stubbs on Monday encouraged persons involved in traffic accidents to refrain from fleeing the scene.
“We’ve seen last year, and more so this year, where we recall hit-and-run accidents have increased where persons would have gotten involved with accidents and just failed to remain stationary.
“It’s an accident. It could either be a driver’s error or any other factors related to the accident, but we appeal to those motorists to please stop.
“Allow the police to come to the scene do the investigation and determine who is at fault for the accident.
“In some cases, you may not be at fault, but it is paramount that you remain on the scene that you remain stationary [and] allow the investigators to come in and do the investigations.”
Yesterday’s accident now brings the traffic fatality count in the capital to four, according to Eyewitness News Online records.
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