Second Fatal Collision Prompts Wooden House Transport Ban

We begin tonight with a tragic crash on the George Price Highway that has claimed the life of an Eight Mile resident. Thirty-eight-year-old Dean Perez was driving toward Belize City when his SUV slammed into a wooden house being transported near Mile 18. Police say the house was on a trailer attached to a Dodge Ram driven by Zinadine Hernandez, who told investigators he saw the SUV coming fast, high beams on, in the opposite lane moments before the collision. Sadly, Perez didn’t survive. This is the second fatal accident like this in just three weeks, the last one killed Pastor Julian Bol on the Southern Highway. Now, these tragedies have pushed the Ministry of Transport to ban the transport of assembled wooden houses altogether. That’s after months of restricting them to nighttime only. We spoke with Transport CEO Chester Williams about the new decision.

 

On the Phone: Chester Williams, C.E.O., Ministry of Transport

“ We have seen that this policy or change is still creating some difficulty as we have now witnessed two fatal accidents between these hours and we believe we had to look at the policy more in-depth and made further adjustment to the policy this morning. Those persons who have permits for the haulage of oversized loads have been notified in writing as an addendum to their current permits that while they do have permission to transport these oversized loads on the highway at nighttime that the oversized loads, particularly housing must be disassembled, or be in parts. That means it will not be extending too far out from the vehicle and create more hazards to those motorist. In addition it is also directed that when they do the transport they must do so with transport or police officers in vehicles with the revolving lights.”