Woman, infant killed in Seaqaqa road crash

A family in Benau, Labasa, is mourning the loss of a 56-year-old woman and an eight-month-old baby who died in a road accident early yesterday morning.

Zakir Hussain said his younger sister, Azmin Nisha, was travelling with his son, Mohammed Fazeel Khan, his daughter-in-law and their two children on a visit to Bua.

Mr Hussain said the accident occurred around 1am as they were returning home.

“Their vehicle was driven by Mohammed's wife, when it collided with an oncoming truck at Seaqaqa Highway,” he said.

“My sister had her grandson sleeping on her lap and both of them died on the spot.”

He said the couple and their two-year-old daughter were taken to Labasa Hospital for treatment.

“It’s a devastating moment for our family as we never thought that Mohammed and his family who had come from Australia for vacation would face such kind of tragedy,” he said.

Mr Hussain said the three remain admitted in hospital.

Police spokesman Sergeant Wame Bautolu confirmed that a woman and a baby died in the accident.

He said investigations into the incident are underway.