A 20 year old BDF Volunteer has died after he was knocked down last night at mile 63 on the George Price Highway. After 7:00 last night, Charles Bell Jr., was on his motorbike heading to his home in Blackman Eddy village when he was knocked down from behind by a van.
He was flung violently to the road where he sustained major head and body trauma. Police rushed him to the San Ignacio Hospital, and from there to the Western Regional, and then to the KHMH where he died from his injuries.
The young volunteer was coming off duty and today in Blackman Eddy, we spoke to his sister and father about the tragic loss:
Voice of: Meisha Myers, Sister of Deceased
"He enjoyed being in the BDF. He was only 20 years old. That was his life's dream. He loved being in the BDF. He was coming off from work when something hit him and from there I am not so sure what happened; how he got to the hospital, but we went to the Cayo hospital. From there, he was transported to Belmopan; they dressed his wounds and straight to Belize City we went. It is really sad because he is young yet; he had so much he wanted to do in life. He enjoyed being in the B.D.F.; that was his main thing. From he was 13; he was interested in it; that was all he wanted to do. He talked about that every day. When he would come off work, he would go visit me and sit down, watch TV and he would tell me about his day and what all he had to do and what all he wanted to do in life. He was saving his little money to build his house; that is what he wanted to have his own house."
"It is so sad mien for someone to do something like this. I don't know who is in the wrong because we haven't heard something so far, but mien, at twenty to lose your life…mien. And he was a good boy; everyone knew him, he was respectable, he was very loved. He loved my 2 kids and I know we are going to take it hard, especially them because they go they ask for him."
Voice of: Charles Bell Sr., Father of Deceased
"It very hard mien. We take it hard. I don't have no hard feelings against the person too because I am a driver too and anything could happen. But then at least they could have stopped and own up to it and at least stop and assist him because we dont know how long he was there on the road before they found him."
Reporter
"Do you know what sort of injuries he suffered?"
Voice of: Charles Bell Sr.
"Only head injuries and a little bit on his hand."
Reporter
"What time did he passed?"
Voice of: Meisha Myers
"About 12:30 they call me in and told me that he had passed. He didn't have any injuries from his head go down; one scrape on knee. His whole face was swollen; his mouth was swollen. I think they said that most of his teeth had fallen out. He couldn't breathe on his own; it was his lungs, they said, that couldn't handle the pressure, so that failed and that is when he passed away. They tried their best but they couldn't do nothing more."
Reporter
"Was there any indication when the doctors had first treated him to indicate that his life was in such a grave danger?"
Voice of: Meisha Myers
"They didn't tell us much. They had us waited outside and they were treating him inside. They didn't explain anything other than they had to take him to Karl Heusner. That's all they told us. From the time they said that we knew that it was serious, but from their mouth they didn't tell us anything about it."
The driver - who was in a tourist van - is from St. Margaret's village and he has been detained.
The last time this stretch of road made the news was back in June of 2017. That's when the former UDP Politician, Elvin Penner, knocked down and killed 41 year-old Kenrick Myvette, a Unitedville resident, who was also on his motorcycle.
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