A Guyanese man travelling in a car which was going at a high speed with four passengers died after it crashed into a utility pole in front of 2141 Central Avenue, New York, on Christmas morning, the Daily Gazette reported.
Dead: Guyana-born Lakhraj “Derrick” Premnauth
According to the Daily Gazette, Police identified the man killed as Guyana-born Lakhraj “Derrick” Premnauth, 24, of Schenectady. Those injured were Veeshram Ramdeo, 17, Kenny Jamuant, 17, and Sunita Hansraj, 21, all of Schenectady.
The report stated that the Colonie Police Department received a call about the accident at about 07:01h. Police at the scene determined the vehicle, a 2001 Audi S4, had been heading east on Central Avenue when it crossed into the westbound lane and struck the utility pole.
“The vehicle split in half and three of the four occupants were ejected from the vehicle,” Colonie Police said in a release. “Unfortunately, one of the ejected passengers, an adult male, was deceased at the scene.”
The scene of the crash (Daily Gazette photo)
According to the Daily Gazette, Ramdeo, the driver, along with his two injured passengers, Jamuant and Hansraj, were taken to Albany Medical Center Hospital with critical injuries and were last reported to be in surgery for multiple traumatic injuries, Police said.
Police Lt Robert Winn said paramedics at the scene told Police the injuries were “critical in nature”. He said he could provide no further update on the conditions of the driver and two passengers. He said it would likely be weeks before a toxicology report is completed determining whether alcohol or drugs played any role in the accident.
The crash broke the utility pole from its base, leaving most of it hanging from its wires.
The Daily Gazette reported that Police at the scene said there was no utility disruption from the accident, and National Grid sent employees to fix the pole.
Colonie Police drones, Colonie EMS, and the Stanford Heights and Midway fire departments also responded to the crash, the Daily Gazette reported.
