La Savanne:--- An 18 year old young man identified as Guillaume Regent from Concordia, St. Martin died around 6pm Tuesday night after being involved in deadly accident in La Savanne. SMN News learnt that Regent lost control of his motorcycle while over taking a car and trying to secure his helmet which was not properly attached. Eyewitnesses of the accident said Regent went airborne and he was run over by another vehicle when he landed on the road. "There was an endless amount of blood on the road when medical personnel were trying to save his life," one eyewitness told SMN News.
Captain Sylvain Joulault confirmed that the accident occurred around 5:30pm and the victim of the motorcycle accident passed away around 6pm while ambulance personnel were trying to resuscitate him. Joulault said that based on the investigation they conducted thus far it shows that the rider of the motorcycle was trying to attach his helmet when he lost control. Regent was well known in the St. Martin community and he attended the Lycee Polyvalent.
A press release from the Gendarmerie states that on Tuesday, July 19 at 5:30pm, the driver of a moped lost his life in a traffic accident. The release explains that the rider was traveling between Marigot and Grand Case. The first elements of the investigation suggest that the victim, although he was wearing his helmet, he did not have the chin strap attached and the helmet ejected during the impact, thus it was unable to protect the victim's head when he struck the soil. The Gendarmes believe that the simple gesture of fastening the chin strap of the helmet would have helped preserve the life of the accident victim. The press release further states that the same drama has added to the loss of four other lives of people that were involved in traffic accidents during the year 2012 in St. Martin. Of the five people who died this year on the roads on the French side of the island, 3 were drivers of two wheel vehicles. Between 2010 and 2012, 11 drivers or passengers on two wheel vehicles have lost their lives and 52 were injured, some of whom keep lifelong consequences.
Although it has been observed that the use of helmets by riders of two-wheel vehicles is becoming more frequent, it is clear that safety remains largely insufficient. In addition, the practice of wearing the helmet simply placed on the top of the head without the chinstrap is attached is regularly observed, the Gendarmes stated. The Gendarmerie said that the failure to wear a safety helmet for drivers or passengers of two wheel vehicles, or wearing the helmet without attaching the chin strap, is a traffic offense punishable by a fine of € 135. It is further the only protection available to drivers and passengers of two wheel vehicles in order to preserve their lives in an accident.