Police vehicle collision overturns SUV at Macoya Road intersection

A marked police vehicle travelling with its sirens activated collided with a Toyota Prado at Macoya Road and the Priority Bus Route on Sunday, overturning the SUV and leaving several people injured, the Trinidad Express reported. The collision occurred around 12.24 p.m. in Tunapuna. According to the police report cited by the newspaper, Prado driver Sushilla Maharaj-Roopnarine, 49, stopped at the traffic light while travelling north along Macoya Road and proceeded when the light turned green. The report said a police Toyota RAV4 travelling west along the Priority Bus Route approached at speed, failed to observe the red light and struck the Prado. The SUV overturned onto its left side. It sustained damage throughout, while the police vehicle was damaged at the front. Constable Jamel Balfour was driving the police vehicle, accompanied by Constable Clarke and two Trinidad and Tobago Regiment members, Privates Sahadeo and Marshall. Fire officers helped occupants out of both vehicles before ambulances transported the injured to hospital. Maharaj-Roopnarine was taken to St Augustine Private Hospital, while the officers and soldiers were taken to the Eric Williams Medical Sciences Complex. An investigator who visited the complex around 2.30 p.m. reported that Balfour had a cut above his left eye, head pain and blurred vision. Clarke complained of back and neck pain. The officers later told the investigator they had been treated and discharged. Maharaj-Roopnarine’s husband, Rohan Roopnarine, said she remained in considerable pain and was undergoing examinations. He said scans had identified no broken bones or internal injuries at that stage, with further tests continuing. The excerpt did not provide an update on the soldiers’ conditions.