FOUR soldiers assigned to the Special Forces Unit of the Defence Force were injured when their unmarked Toyota Fortuner SUV collided with a Water and Sewerage Authority (WASA) SUV on the Priority Bus Route (PBR) on Monday.
Two of the soldiers remained at hospital up to late yesterday, one of them in a serious condition, said public relations officer of the Trinidad and Tobago Regiment, Warrant Officer Joachim Hernandez.
Two WASA employees—Shivanand Sinanan, 49, of Freeport and Jerry Joseph—were also injured in the crash, which occurred around 9.p.m. on Monday at the corner of Farm Road and the PBR in St Joseph. Both were treated at hospital and discharged, police said.
According to Hernandez, who spoke with the Express during a brief telephone interview yesterday, two other soldiers were treated at hospital and subsequently discharged.
Hernandez confirmed the officers, who were on duty, were in possession of their service firearms but could not confirm police reports that a magazine and ammunition could not be accounted for after the crash.
The incident, police said, occurred when a white Hyundai Tucson (PCT 6670), which belongs to WASA and was driven by one of its employees, was crossing the PBR south along Farm Road.
Officers added at the same time, the unmarked heavily-tinted military vehicle, which was proceeding along the PBR, collided with the WASA vehicle.
The military SUV flipped several times and crashed on its hood some 300 feet away from impact. Seven firearms and a large quantity of ammunition which were in the possession of the soldiers were taken by police for safe keeping and later handed over to military personnel, police said.
At the scene of the crash, soldiers searched the roadway and nearby bushes for ammunition which were lost during the crash. They resumed their searches yesterday, using the assistance of civilian workers to cut grass nearby as they searched for the missing ammunition.
The Express was told that at least one magazine and four rounds of ammunition were lost.
Officers of the St Joseph Police Station are continuing investigations into the traffic accident.
(Source http://www.trinidadexpress.com/news/Soldiers__WASA_workers_injured_in_PBR_crash-137072998.html)
