A 65-year-old woman is dead after being struck by a loose rear wheel from a lorry on the Corentyne Highway in Region Six (East Berbice-Corentyne) on Sunday morning.
The tragic incident occurred at Alness Village as Donna Punch, a housewife and church leader, was about to get into a car with her husband, Pastor Leroy Punch, to attend a Sunday service at the New Jerusalem Church of Alness.
According to Pastor Punch, the couple was heading to church as usual, although they were running slightly behind schedule. A church member who had already arrived at the public road called the pastor to inform him that a car was available. As the Punches made their way to the car, tragedy struck.
“So we hurrying up now to get in the car, and the next thing you know, I hear this big truck coming. So I take a look at the truck and I see it coming. Something say, look again. And when I look again, I see this big wheel coming. Me right there, and my wife is next to me. I see this big wheel coming. She didn’t see it because she was taking her umbrella down to get in the car. By the time this wheel roll and come to the edge of the road and bounce, the thing coming straight to me and I barely duck out. And this thing jump over me…”
“When I looked around, I saw my wife rolling away. I couldn’t help her—I had to save myself.”
Initial reports indicate that the wheel came from the rear of a ten-wheeled lorry. Pastor Punch said the driver later explained that the lug nuts may have loosened, causing the wheel to detach.
The incident occurred just before a turn in the road. Because of the curve, the detached wheel continued moving in a straight line, ultimately crossing into the opposite side of the road—directly where the Punches were standing.
The matter is currently under police investigation.
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