Photo: Edgar Gongora, deceased
by Charles Gladden
BELIZE CITY, Tues. Oct. 15, 2024
Over the long weekend, two motorcycle accidents occurred, each of which claimed a life.
The first incident occurred on Saturday night, October 12, on the Thomas Vincent Ramos Highway. The victim, 17-year-old Christian Guerra, was riding a Skygo motorcycle between Miles 2 and 3 of the highway near Silk Grass Village, Stann Creek District, when he was struck by a Dodge Ram pickup truck being driven by 30-year-old Exequias Vasquez.
According to official reports, around 10:00 p.m., Guerra was riding alone on the highway when Vasquez collided with him head-on, causing Guerra to be flung onto the pavement and to perish at the scene. When police arrived at the scene, they saw pieces of Guerra’s extensively damaged motorcycle scattered on the side of the road. He was taken to the Southern Regional Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
Vasquez was taken into police custody and has been charged with multiple offenses – manslaughter by negligence, causing death by careless conduct, driving a motor vehicle without due care and attention, and driving a motor vehicle with alcohol concentration above the prescribed limit.
The following day, another fatal accident occurred in Yo Creek Village, Orange Walk District, and claimed the life of 24-year-old Edgar Gongora of Yo Creek.
Reports surrounding this incident indicate that sometime before 7:00 p.m., Gongora was riding his motorcycle on the San Antonio Road and attempted to overtake a car being driven by 28-year-old Lorenzo Maldonado of Cotton Tree Village.
While Gongora was attempting to overtake the car, Maldonado decided to make a U-turn, which caused both vehicles to collide, resulting in Gongora’s fatal injuries.
Guerra’s death marks the third fatal motorcycle accident to have occurred on that highway within a month.
“It’s a crisis, as you pointed out. We are working with the National Transport to see how best to address this issue. Even in my conference, I told the commanders we needed to do more,” said Commissioner of Police, Chester Williams.
“We’re seeing that no matter how much we try, and no matter how much the media publicizes these accidents, and even with the safety tips that we are giving, these drivers aren’t taking heed. They don’t give a damn,” he added.
ComPol Williams said that part of the crisis on the highways stems from a lack of enforcement.
“It’s an enforcement issue. You can’t enforce what you’re not seeing; because the truth is, in the presence of the police, they abide by every law. But the minute they step out of the view of the police, they break the law,” he highlighted.
“I do believe that the traffic needs to be stricter [with] legislative intervention. I do believe that the traffic laws are antiquated to some extent, and the penalties that go with them reflect the ‘70s and ‘80s. There’s a need to bring the penalty in line [with] 2022, 2023, 2024 type penalties. A $25 fine in the ’70s would be like a $500 fine today, right? So, we need to look at that,” ComPol Williams noted.
A Notice of Intended Prosecution (NIP) has been served on Maldonado.