Photo: Virginia Davis, Torrie Gentle and Dorothy Davis

by Charles Gladden

LADYVILLE, Belize District, Mon. June 12, 2023

A road traffic accident has claimed the lives of three women – Virginia Davis, 27; Torrie Gentle, 27, and Dorothy Davis, 17, all from the Fresh Pond/Burrell Boom Village — and injured Kurtis Belisle, 31, who was driving the vehicle in which they were traveling. According to reports, the vehicle overturned and rammed into a tree between Miles 10 and 11 on the Philip Goldson Highway on Friday, June 9.

Reports are indicating that Belisle was driving a pickup truck with the three women inside from the direction of Lords Bank area to Burrell Boom, when Belisle swerved left in an attempt to overtake a vehicle that was traveling in the same direction. During that maneuver, however, he lost control of the vehicle, which overturned and collided with a mango tree in the vicinity of Tubal Trade and Vocational Institute.

When police arrived at the scene, they found Belisle and two of his passengers on the right side of the highway, while the other passenger was trapped inside the damaged vehicle.

ACP Hilberto Romero, OC of the Police Department’s Eastern Division, noted to reporters that there is a curve in that area and said he believes that Belisle’s truck slipped off the pavement into the loose gravel while he was overtaking the other vehicle, which resulted in him losing control of the truck.

While the matter is under investigation, ACP Romero believes that all four persons were under the influence of alcohol when the accident occurred, as broken bottles were found at the scene.

All four persons were taken to the Karl Heusner Memorial Hospital; however, all three women were pronounced dead on arrival. Belisle was listed as being in a serious but stable condition and remains at the hospital.