The area where the woman was lying when she met her demise
A mother of five met her demise in the wee hours of Saturday after she was struck down by a speeding vehicle attached to the Guyana Defence Force (GDF) along the Foulis Public Road, West Coast Berbice (WCB).
Dead is 38-year-old Lavi De Sade Longe also known as “Dee Dee” of El Dorado Village, WCB. She was attached to the National Agricultural Research and Extension Institute (NARIE), where she worked as an analyst.
Based on reports received, the accident occurred at about 01:05h and involved a bus bearing registration number DFB 1661, driven by a 46-year-old Staff Sergeant from Timehri North, East Bank Demerara (EBD).
Dead: Lavi De Sade Longe
Police stated that the bus was travelling west on the southern side of Foulis Public Road, WCB, allegedly at a fast rate, when it collided with Longe, who was allegedly in the centre of the roadway. Longe suffered severe head injuries and lost her life instantly.
Police ranks were alerted of the accident and subsequently visited the scene at about 01:40h. The body of the deceased was picked up and taken to Bailey’s Funeral Parlour.
However, after committing the accident, the vehicle sped away but was later intercepted along the Vigilance Public Road, East Coast Demerara (ECD). The driver was immediately taken into custody where a breathalyser test was conducted but there were no traces of alcohol in his system.
The Police are currently reviewing CCTV footage of the accident as investigations continue.
That CCTV footage, which was seen by <<<Guyana Times>>>, showed Longe staggering along the El Dorado Village Public Road. The woman then walked into the centre of the road and later lay flat.
A minibus, upon seeing the woman, stopped and activated its hazard lights. However, the GDF vehicle, instead of stopping, ran straight over the woman, crushing her in the process.
Following the accident, a friend of the dead woman told <<<Guyana Times>>> that Longe was under the influence of alcohol at the time of her demise.
“We heard that she had been at a wake somewhere and had been drinking. She was probably walking home when she decided to lie in the middle of the road and was crushed by the GDF bus. However, what we can’t understand is why the first bus driver didn’t help her if he realised she was drunk,” the friend said.
“Additionally, the bus driver saw the hazard lights on; why didn’t he stop? He was just speeding. He took that girl away from her family.”
Meanwhile, Elouise Longe, the dead woman’s mother, recalled being awakened at about 2:00h by a resident who informed her of the woman’s demise.
“You all lie down in there and ‘Lovie’ dead on the road; an accident on the road,” the mother recalled the person saying. At that time, a relative was sent to enquire and after a while, she returned bearing the devastating news.
The aggrieved woman related that based on reports gathered, her daughter suffered head injuries. “Her brains scatter on the road; her head buss open and one of her hands crushed.”
She recalled seeing her daughter alive on Friday after work when she was given some money.
Longe is said to have left for a wake on Friday evening which was at Burma. Her mother related that after the wake, she stopped off at Profit Village, two villages away from her home, where she attended a party.
Longe leaves to mourn her mother and five children.
