Falklands : Falklands Police Chief Gives Urgent Advice about Road Safety
Submitted by Falkland Islands News Network (Juanita Brock) 18.06.2009 (Article Archived on 02.07.2009)
According to the Royal Falkland Islands Police at 3.45pm Friday 12th June an accident occurred on Ross Road near to its junction with Villiers Street where Master Ashley Reeves aged 9 years, stepped off the footpath straight into the path of a RFIP Land Rover 90 being driven by Sgt Tom Whistler.
POLICE CHIEF GIVES URGENT ADVICE ABOUT ROAD SAFETY
By J. Brock (FINN)
According to the Royal Falkland Islands Police at 3.45pm Friday 12th June an accident occurred on Ross Road near to its junction with Villiers Street where Master Ashley Reeves aged 9 years, stepped off the footpath straight into the path of a RFIP Land Rover 90 being driven by Sgt Tom Whistler.
Ashley was struck by the Land Rover and was taken to the KEMH by ambulance where he was detained with a fractured pelvis and cuts and bruising. The accident is being investigated by Inspector Len McGill. An independent witness who was driving a mini bus in the opposite direction at the time of the accident has verified the fact that Ashley stepped off the pavement directly into the path of the Rover without looking and that although the Rover was being driven slowly, there was no way that Sgt Whistler could have avoided colliding with the child. Ashley spent a few days in hospital but is now at home where he is expected to make a full recovery, however his injuries are such that it is likely it will take up to 6 weeks before he will be fit enough to return to school.
Also the Police report that at 7.02pm on Saturday 13th June a second accident involving a child pedestrian occurred on Snake Hill. Miss Tiegan Curtis aged 11 years had just alighted from her mothers car and having been dropped off she went round behind the car to cross the road, but then ran across Snake Hill directly into the path of a Toyota Prado being driven up the hill by Ramon Mirander. The Prado struck Tiegan who was taken to hospital by ambulance and detained overnight with injuries to her ankle and cuts and bruises. She is now home and recovering well. Tiegan has told police that the accident happened because she was ‘trying to beat the car across the road’. There is no suggestion that Mr Mirander was driving irresponsibly or could have avoided the accident.
Superintendent Paul Elliott said “The outcome of both of these road accidents could have been so much worse. It is a mercy that the drivers of both vehicles involved were driving within the speed limit in a responsible manner, otherwise two families could have been faced with the tragic loss of their children”
A Police Officer will be attending school assemblies early next week (after the school holiday break), to speak with children and impress upon them the need to take special care when crossing the roads by always looking both ways and not crossing the road unless they are sure its safe and nothing is coming.
Superintendent Elliot continued that “Whilst the drivers involved in these two accidents were driving responsibly, within the speed limits and had not been drinking, that cannot always be said of a small minority of the motoring public in and around Stanley. The Royal Falkland Islands Police appeals to all drivers to take note of these two accidents, think what could have been the outcome, and always remain alert for the possibility that a child may suddenly cross the road without thinking in your path”.
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