A street in San Fernando will soon be renamed after steelpan arranger and extraordinaire pannist Ken “Professor” Philmore, three months after he died in an accident in south Trinidad.
This was revealed by San Fernando mayor Junia Regrello during the corporation’s monthly statutory meeting held at City Hall yesterday.
Regrello said other street names will be changed to honour the legends of the city.
Regrello said Bertrand Street will be renamed the Rodney Wilkes Street in honour of the T&T’s first medalist who won the gold medal at the 1946 Central American and Caribbean Games in Barranquilla, Colombia.
Wilkes, who was known as the Mighty Midget, trained in weightlifting using flour bags to build his strength.
Since 2011, resident Patrick Laurence called for a street to be named in honour of Wilkes. Laurence said Wilkes was 23 years old when he won the silver Olympic medal without the benefit of international training.
Meanwhile, Regrello also announced that Quenca Street will be renamed the Dr Rupert Indar Snr Street.
Indar, who opened the first medical centre in the city in 1970, is 92 years old. He also opened the first Oncology Centre in the country.
Regrello further said that T&T’s first Olympic champion and the first Olympic 100m champion from a Caribbean country Hasely Crawford will also be honoured as Independence Avenue will be renamed after him.
Philmore, 58, died in September, six days after his Toyota Hilux skidded along the northbound carriageway of the Solomon Hochoy highway and flipped several times. He suffered severe internal injuries in the crash which occurred on the Republic Day holiday. Following his death, Regrello, a personal friend, said a fitting tribute will be given to Philmore.
During a meeting in December, the San Fernando City Council confirmed the renaming of the stretch from Paradise Street to Library Corner as Lennox “Bobby” Mohammed Street; Independence Avenue in a westerly direction to Hatters panyard as Steve Achaiba Street; Lower High Street in an easterly direction to Quenca Street adjacent to Republic Bank as Robert Montano Street; Crosby Lane to JD Guides Lane; and Coffee Street, in a southerly direction to Medine Street, as Belgroves Lane. See Page A9