HAGÅTÑA (The Guam Daily Post) —
The island has had 12 traffic-related deaths less than halfway through the year, compared to 2022, when there were 14.
Last week, a 2-year-old girl was hit by a car as she was playing with other children in a parking lot in Upper Tumon and a man operating a motorcycle struck a curb passing Ypao Beach. Both were pronounced dead — the 11th and 12th traffic-related fatalities of the year.
On June 13, a 2-year-old girl was playing with four other children in the parking lot of an Upper Tumon Apartment when a Mitsubishi Outlander hit the child. She was pronounced dead at the hospital later the same evening. Terry Sabnat was charged with vehicular homicide in connection to the death.
A little more than a day later, a motorcyclist was pronounced dead after hitting a curb as he was passing the entrance to Ypao Beach on Route 14, San Vitores Road, in Tumon.
In light of the island being less than six months into the year, Guam Police Department spokesperson Officer Berlyn Savella on behalf of GPD, urged the community to be mindful of traffic safety.
Savella said “seatbelts are sexy” and “speed kills.”
“Remember that the safety of ourselves and others on the road is of the utmost importance. Let’s make sure we do our part in promoting responsible and safe driving habits,” Savella stated.
GPD stated traffic laws must be followed:
- Obey posted speed limits and traffic signals.
- Keep a safe distance from other vehicles on the road.
- Avoid distractions while driving, such as using a phone, texting or eating.
- Use turn signals when changing lanes or making turns.
- When approaching an intersection, be aware of pedestrians crossing.
- Use headlights when visibility is low, such as in rain or while on poorly lighted areas of the roadways.
- If you decide to drink, identify a designated river to get to your destination safely.
- Yield to emergency vehicles when they have their lights and sirens on.
Savella also stated that if traffic lights are without power, officers will continue to be at “major intersections monitoring due to potential scheduled outages where traffic directions will commence, as needed.”
2023 deaths
The first five traffic fatalities of the year occurred in February.
The first was Venix Fiden, a man from Yigo, who on Feb. 7 was driving a Nissan Pathfinder on Route 15 before colliding with a garbage truck.
The second was Martin Perez Ruiz, of Tamuning, who was struck by a Honda Ridgeline on Feb. 12 traveling in the middle eastbound lane of Route 1 whiles using a pedestrian crosswalk at the ITC intersection in Tamuning.
Five days later, on Feb. 17, bicyclist Jeffry Ignacio was hit by a Mitsubishi Lancer near the U.S. Postal Service’s Guam Main Facility in Barrigada. The man was in critical and unstable condition until being pronounced dead three weeks later.
On Feb. 22, Florinda Herrera Rosero, an 83-year-old woman crossing a pedestrian crosswalk at the ITC intersection, was struck by a Ford F-150.
On Feb. 25, a motorcyclist, Charles Chet Gallinari, of Yigo, was hit by a Dodge Challenger executing a U-turn on Route 1 by Chief Brodie Elementary School in Tamuning.
In March, 38-year-old Kamerino Angkel died after being hit by a car as he was crossing Route 1 by Hmart in Anigua, marking the sixth traffic-related fatality of the year.
On May 12, Malee Estrellado was fatally hit by a vehicle as she was crossing the Route 10 and Route 15 intersection in Mangilao.
In April, there was one death in Humåtak after Manley Blechel, the driver of a liquid petroleum gas tanker truck, ran off of Route 2, collided with a guardrail and landed in a ravine.
On May 19, a two-car crash on Route 16 in Harmon by Today’s Realty, just before the underpass, resulted in the death of the two drivers involved. One was identified as 24-year-old Maxon Williams; the other driver hadn’t been identified.
And last week, the 2-year-old girl and male motorcyclist died after traffic incidents.
A Guam Police Department officer takes photos at the scene of a collision involving an automobile and a pedestrian on Feb. 12, 2023, in Tamuning.
