Corentyne, Berbice – September 29, 2025 – What began as a Sunday afternoon ride ended in heartbreak for a Berbice family. Eric Kissoon, just 23 years old, was killed after his motorcycle slammed into a bridge at Number 68 Village. Two passengers, 13-year-old Soohil Thakuradi, a secondary school student, and 28-year-old Goomraj Veerasammy, are now battling for their lives in hospital.
Police say Kissoon had no licence, and none of the three wore helmets. Witnesses described the bike speeding along the eastern lane before it veered off at a bend and struck the bridge railing. Kissoon was rushed to Number 75 Regional Hospital unconscious, but doctors could not save him. His pillion riders, both semi-conscious, were admitted with serious injuries.
For Kissoon’s loved ones, the loss is almost too much to process. “He never came home,” one relative whispered outside the hospital mortuary, where his body now lies awaiting a post-mortem.
This is not an isolated tragedy. Guyana has seen a deadly surge in road accidents this year. Between January and mid-June, 54 fatal crashes claimed 58 lives, a 17 percent jump from last year.
Motorcyclists are the hardest hit, with 30 killed so far, half of them not wearing helmets. Even pillion riders are dying in greater numbers; seven have already lost their lives in 2025, compared to just one for the same period in 2024.
Each statistic carries a story, a family left grieving, children left fatherless, parents left inconsolable. And each story, like Eric’s, reminds us how fragile life becomes when caution is ignored on the road.
