31-Yr-Old Man Dies In Traffic Collision
Bermuda has suffered its tenth road traffic fatality of the year with the death of a 31-year-old man this morning [Oct 11]
A few minutes before 4am this morning, first responders were called out to a report of a single vehicle road traffic collision at the junction of (East Broadway) Crow Lane and Cork-Screw Hill.
As a result they came upon a 31-year-old Southampton man in a non-responsive state a few feet away from his motorcycle. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
No further information shall be given until the next of kin has been notified. Bernews extends our condolences to the family and friends of the victim.
As of 6am the Police are on scene, and traffic is presently being blocked at the top of Corkscrew Hill, as well as at both ends of East Broadway. Access is restricted, even to media.
Update 5:22pm: The Bermuda Police have officially named the gentleman as Earlston Kavon Bailey Smith.
This marks the 2nd fatality of the month, 2nd in that area this year, and the 10th road traffic fatality of 2010:
- 22 yr old Adam Goodwin died on Oct 3 after a bike accident in Smith’s
- 20 yr old Geoffrey Burns died on Sept 1 after a bike accident in Paget
- 28 yr old Katrina Flood died on June 12 after a bike accident on East Broadway
- 27 yr old Omar Sutton died on May 29 after a collision with a truck
- 69 yr old Derek Smith died on April 24, weeks after being struck by a motorcycle
- 41 yr old Andre Hendrickson died on April 17 after being struck by a car while walking
- 26 yr old Carlton Darrell died on April 2nd after a single vehicle accident in Devonshire
- 23 yr old Dareiko Simons died on Jan 9 after his bike collided with a car in Sandys
- 21 yr old Earl Ingemann died after a Jan 1st car crash, man arrested & charged in connection
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- Bermuda Road Traffic Fatality June 2010 | Bernews.com | December 11, 2010
How many lives has this corner taken! Maybe its time for a mega speed bump to be put in place there as the yellow strips are clearly not effective.
My condolences to this young man’s family and friends.
My condolences to the deceased and his family. Publicise the statistics so that we can know exactly which fatalities involve alcohol. Then we can plan road safety in a sober fashion. Instead of ‘speed-bumping’ the problem away!
mega speed bump that sends riders flying?
its a corner… if they arent slowing down to turn, why do people think they’ll slow down for a bump?
Mega speed bumps do not send people flying. If you notice, the speed bump on Par-La-Ville road and the newly installed bump in Flatts are very effective in slowing down traffic. Once the public know that these bumps are in place, traffic tend to slow down.
Of course the Mega Bump would not be on the actual corner but just before the junction of cork screw hill.
This bump can serve two purposes 1) slow traffic and 2) allow traffic to enter onto crow lane/east broadway from cork screw. It’s just a thought!!!
yes speed bumps slow traffic down. of course they do, but only for people who drive safely. corners force you to slow down too, but if someone (either drunk, attention elsewhere, or just risky driving) wont slow down for a corner that’s always been there, why do people think they’ll slow down for a bump??
yes it slows down “traffic”, but “traffic” isn’t being killed on this corner. it’s individuals who are being killed, and not all individuals are going to slow down for a bump.
Friday night not knowing flats put all those rumble strips and that “Mega Speed Bump” I flew over it before i even saw it being from west i did not even know it was there and my friend had to hold on to my bike and my friend behind me from the central area said we was at least 3ft in the air. so a mega speed bump bad idea.
If anything, i’d say the best thing to do with that corner (and probably the only thing realistic) is to put but huge reflectors so people know there’s a corner.
they have them on highways and roads all over the world… arrowed reflectors, or big blue/red lined reflectors.. whatever… if ya can’t make people slow down, make them more aware of it.
Drunk driving? So sad. I’ve spoken with so many people, police and firefighters, and all have said the same thing. Its the first obstacle on the way out of town, hence all the late night/early morning accidents.
MY CONDOLENCES TO THE FAMILY…..
YEAH THOSE YELLOW STRIPS MAKE YOU GO FASTER…..YES, A MEGA SPEED BUMP IS NEEDED!!
a friend of mine died at that same corner back in 2002…maybe roadworks can see how to best change that corner, the elevation change coming off the straight can catch some people off guard…@Mega i agree that those strips are a waste of money…not quite sold on the speed bump idea though…I send my condolences to the family of this young man.
Speed bumps are NOT the solution. Safer, more defensive driving on the part of ALL people is. Speed bumps and road markings cannot think FOR us and can never replace common sense. That corner has been the same since we all started driving; it hasn’t changed and we know what to expect, the kind of caution required in that area.
My sincere condolences to family and friends for their loss, and I am blaming nobody. But we as motor vehicle operators need to stop feeling sorry and start being more proactive for our own, and for our loved ones’, safety.
My deepest condolences to the family and friends of this young man.
I don’t think a speed bump is the answer. Can you imagine how much slower the traffic would be at 5pm with a “mega speedbump” in the way?! This is not some side road we are talking about; it is Bermuda’s “mini-highway” and if people can’t learn to take their time, avoid drinking and driving, and stop riding recklessly then, unfortunately, this is the consqequence. Yes, there have been too many deaths at this particular spot but the majority of people make it through without a problem and as many others have pointed out, if a corner isn’t slowing them down why would a speedbump! I would suggest adding a camera in the area to study if there are any trends and possibly find out the real reason people are losing their lives at this junction.
The reason people are losing their lives at this corner is due to the fact that they’re full hot (hence coming home at 4am) and it’s the first obstacle that requires any skill on the way out of town.
@ wow!! Has not yet been confirmed that alcohol was involved. We can only speculate. At least wait until it’s official before making a judgement call. My prayers are with the family as they come to terms with the death of a loved one. May God Bless you during this trying time.. Peace and Love
Speed bumps are not the answer. They won’t slow the drunk down who, in his stupor, will forget it tis there. Stupid raised painted ‘rumble strips’ don’t work either. Big corner warning arrows don’t work either. We all know our roads very well, right down to every little pothole or uneven trenching ditch to avoid.
The area in question is a corner &, like just about every other corner in Bermuda the camber of the road is flat. Why are corners flat instead of cambered as found anywhere else in the world that has a modern road system & the money to build & maintain it. A cambered corner is much safer than a flat especially for people on bikes.
Hundreds of thousands were recently spent in the Crow Lane area. For what???
The powers that be seem to forget that what is safe for cars is not always the same as what is safe for bikes. (See, for example, the “anti-slip” surfacing on the corner by Barns Corner on Middle Road. Fine for cars, awful for bikes.) Speed bumps are dangerous to motorcyclists in the same way. Given that the vast majority of fatal accidents involve bikes, I strongly believe that this should be given more consideration than it currently is.
As many have said, no speed bump or signage is effective if the driver is careless, and that is the area that is more problematic in Bermuda.
My sincere condolences to the family and friends of the man who was killed.
If you can serve speed bumps in a bottle it might work! Otherwise, our problem is alcohol and you all know it well!
I’ll drink to that!
@Chop Sui
KNOW the facts before you make such STUPID comments. My cousin’s death had NOTHING to do with alcohol. if you dont have anything positive or comforting to say than DONT say anythign at all.
Thnx
I totally agree with ‘Cousin’. If you don’t know the facts then don’t comment. Think about what his family, child & friends are going thru right now!!
what was it then? can you please enlighten us? i agree that people should not jump to conclusions and assume they know what went on, but when people do not know the facts they can’t help but make assumptions. please help us understand!!
Wet roads, blown tire, cat ran in front of bike – all sorts of things could have happened! The person is not always drunk.
Unfortunately the road safety council nor do the police enlighten the public as to the cause of these accidents therefore drink driving is almost always assumed.
Last time I checked it didn’t rain that day. I’m sorry but statistics show most fatalities at 4am are due to intoxication, and that corner is notorious for taking down drunk drivers.
@ Logic he was not drunk..eventually the truth will be revealed..when it is time for the public to know…You are just ASSUMING that he was drunk..and we know what happens when we assume things.. YOU make an ASS out of U and ME!!! In each of your postings you continually speak of drunk driving or elluding to that fact (experience perhaps?)…in not one of your postings do you offer the family support or prayer..have some respect for his family and stop speaking of things that you don’t know about….
i’ve had a friend who got knocked into the oncoming lane because his kickstand was down when he went to turn.
it’s true that it is not always alcohol involved in these things, but when its the early AM hours on a friday or saturday night, other options simply seem like too much of a coincidence.
Sampson? He was a good kid taken too early. I’m assuming you’re talking about him as that’s how he was taken.
yup. him indeed. no dangerous driving or drinking there. just sadly missed something that usually happens as instinct instead of consciously thinking about it. I too have started going and forgotten to put it up a couple times. sometimes these accidents are just caused by bad luck
I’m sorry you are offended cousin, My comment was directed to what I believe is the major cause of most road deaths in general not toward your cousin in particular. You are right, I do not know and could not know what happened to him. I sincerely apologise and although I wish you comfort in your time of loss I also wish to remind us that this is not a memorial blog it is a news blog. I’m just commenting for all of us, (including myself) who have lost loved ones recently and want to get to the crux of the matter for the benefit of all of Bermuda. My comments are positive though not comforting to all and for that I am understanding. My condolences.
@ Cousin I am with you 100% on this..facts need to be heard before one makes a judgement call….I’m sorry that you feel the need to defend…don’t mind the “naysayers” who are making comments without a leg to stand on..you owe them nothing…stay strong and uphold your family members who might need you as their pillar of strength and support during this time of bereavement.. my prayers and thoughts are with you and yours…..May God continue to bless you…Peace and Love
I feel that cameras need to be placed there to see and observe just what goes on in that location THEN determine what action needs to take place. Put a camera there that captures right before you get to corkscrew and then another one capturing right at corkscrew….the accident spot.
And else for those yellow lines…they are dangerous mainly when the roads are wet. Who was the Einstein that put them on St. John’s Cemetary hill right on the sharp bend…i take my time going off that hill but as you turn the corner going over the yellow lines…the lines pull my car over almost to the other side of the road! I almost hit another car because of this!
That big pink crow lane building needs to be removed from the highway! It’s time for change in this area. I realise this is a landmark but if we can improve the little highway to make it safer and the road a bit straighter, it’s an option worth looking into.
No, there doesn’t need to be a change in the infrastructure, only in the driving habits of Bermudians. How many accidents happen at this corner at rush hour? None that I’ve heard of. Now how many happen at odd hours of the morning? Hmm…I wonder why…
@ Logic..still assuming….wait again I say until its official…
@ logic again..how many accidents happen while people are on their way to work (rush hour)??? I guess they are “that” as well (two cars just hit this morning 10/12/2010)
There are camera’s there, however they are “inoperable”.
Putting those yellow ripples before many of the bends is very dangerous as normally they were designed to be used well in advance at intersections traveling in a straigh line and higher speeds. Putting them just before corners risks loss of traction unsettling road users potentially causing accidents. Has it been questioned whether the ones at crow lane had any part to play?
I think the police (and family) should definitely state eventually the cause of each accident, whether it be alcohol, falling asleep, cell phone, object running across, or whatever. However, this will not affect how each and every one of us make decisions. There is nothing we can do to change grown adults choices we are responsible for our own!
Condolences to the family and friends of today’s and past road fatalities!
Actually I was out at the beach that night and saw the victim, he didn’t seem drunk to me and I have always known him to be a good rider, he even used to scramble down Coney Island. He was actually being held up by the police just before he left, so if he was drunk I doubt the police would have let him leave on his bike.
My Condolences to his Family and Friends.
Why does everyone assume that alcohol is involved in every vehicle accident that happens when it’s a virtual guarantee that at any given time there are more people operating cars , bikes etc under the influence of drugs ? I can’t be the only one who regularly gets behind a car or truck with eau de herb pouring out of the cab.
And let’s not get going about the crack heads racing around looking for their next $50
Are people forgetting what a massive industry the drug trade is here ?
And unlike people who have been drinking , there is no on the spot ‘drug test’ .
DUI pertains to alcohol AND drugs, sobriety testing covers drugs as well as alcohol.
Maybe , but have you ever seen anyone appear in court on the charge of driving under the influence of drugs ?
Or maybe know of someone who passed the alco-analyzer and laughed all the way home because they weren’t screened for drugs even though they shouldn’t have been driving ?
good information,thank you