A Mennonite couple, husband and wife, met a tragic end today when around 3:30 p.m., at approximately Mile 26 on the Northern Highway, their light blue Kia Sportage smashed head-on into a Courts 6-wheeler delivery truck, headed toward Belize City.
The Kia, heading north, was being driven by Enrique Petkau, 62. His wife, Halina Petkau, was his only passenger. The rescue services had to utilize heavy duty equipment to dismantle parts of the vehicle to gain access to the bodies.
Fire and rescue service and police personnel had to use blow torches and specialized pulling equipment to get the mangled bodies out of the Kia. It was obvious that they died on impact, given the horrific state of the bodies. Enrique and Halina were members of the Mennonite community of Shipyard.
The Courts delivery truck was driven by Elias Torres, according to police. Reports to Amandala are that Torres was the only one in the truck, and he received only superficial inquires, but nevertheless will be taken into the Karl Heusner Memorial Hospital for observation.
The Northern Highway between Miles 25 and 27 was closed to vehicular traffic for the better part of two hours due to the accident. That portion of the road is in the vicinity of Biscayne Village.