Freeport man recalls fiery rescue

Kerwayne Frazer, 34, who pulled Steffon Madho from a burning car early Saturday morning, is asking the injured man’s family to contact him. He said he wants to know if the young man is alright. Frazer, a father of four from Freeport, pulled Madho from a Nissan B15 which skidded out of control, ran off the road on the southbound lane of the Sir Solomon Hochoy Highway, Freeport, and burst into flames. Keshav Ragoo, 20, and Sheldon Ramdial, 25, remained trapped inside the car and died at the scene.

Frazer told the T&T Guardian he was accustomed to assisting people involved in vehicular accidents because he lives next to the northbound lane of the highway, just off the Freeport Flyover. “Living here we see plenty accidents. Everybody around here accustom to people crashing all hours and we always help whoever we could.” Frazer recalled: “I was watching football when I hear a bang. I just run out and cross the highway and see this car inside the drain.” He said the car was on fire when he arrived on the scene.

“I saw fire on the bonnet and then I saw a hand,” Frazer said. “I realised it was the driver trying to come out.” Frazer said he grabbed Madho’s hand and pulled him out. “The skin on his hand peeled away when I grabbed him,” he said. Frazer said as soon Madho got out of the car, it went up in flames. He said Madho told him two of his friends were still in the car but there was nothing anyone could do to save them. He said a police car arrived on the scene and the officers gave him a fire extinguisher to try to put out the flames.

“There was gas leaking from the car and even though I used out the foam from the extinguisher, the car continued to blaze.” Frazer expressed his condolences to the families of Ragoo and Ramdial. He said he had played football with both men in Freeport on a few occasions. Frazer said just about an hour after that accident he heard another crash and ran out to help. Luckily, no one was injured in that incident. 

“Parents have to think twice about buying fast cars for their children. I does see too much of them end up on the side of the road,” he said.