THA Chief Secretary Farley Augustine and PNM Tobago leader Ancil Dennis are among those heartbroken over the deaths of a couple who died in Thursday's fatal accident on the Claude Noel Highway in Tobago.
Augustine and Dennis shared on social media that they were friends of Christian Adams and his wife Teresa Alleyne-Adams, who were crushed to death when a truck proceeding west along the highway collided with a grey seven-seater proceeding in the opposite direction, and fell on top of the couple's white Suzuki SUV.
The truck careened off the vehicle and rolled down an incline off the highway and ended up on its side.
The couple, of Mt St George, were on their way to pick up their three children from school. The truck driver and others involved in the crash were taken to hospital for treatment. They have since been discharged.
[caption id="attachment_1016968" align="alignnone" width="1024"] Farley Augustine. -[/caption]
In a Facebook post, Augustine shared that Alleyne-Adams, a financial analyst at the Division of Finance, Trade and Economy, was dutifully at work hours before the tragic accident.
"You were your usual pleasant and polite self yesterday. You were right there yesterday! No one could imagine that when you left work yesterday, that you were leaving us forever.”
He added: “You were the leader of the team that planned most of our internal social activities. You always had it covered. You had us distributing roses, hopping around the lawn, dancing around chairs and sitting on pillows for Divali picnics.”
He said they were also classmates at Bishop’s High School.
[caption id="attachment_1016969" align="alignnone" width="1024"] Ancil Dennis -[/caption]
“You had an impact on me personally. One minute we are planning reunion and the next we are planning a funeral. To the family and close friends or Teresa and Christian, we are here for you all. We are right here praying and agonizing. We are offering all support needed in this difficult time. Only God can help us through this one.”
Dennis, a former chief secretary, was also deeply affected by the deaths as he and Adams were friends for more than 20 years, adding that he was a "class act."
“We played as both teammates and opponents from Under-15 (teams), to food and fete match level. He was even more of a class act off the cricket field where we maintained a good friendship. A proper example ,he was as a man in society, father to his children, and husband to his lovely wife. Our friendly on-field rivalry which started in the cricket nets at Shaw Park at age 13, continued into adulthood. He smashed me for a couple sixes at our last on-field encounter during the inaugural Chief Secretary T-10 Blast, and the usual banter followed for months.”
He said whenever his own challenges were evident be it personal, political or otherwise, a phone call or visit from Adams was assured.
Counselling has been offered to the families of the couple, even as investigations continue, ACP Tobago Collis Hazel said on Friday.
"We did provide psychosocial
