Go fund Kawa! Scooter accident victim requires thousands to treat major head injury abroad
An appeal has been made for crowdfunding for a young man, Kawa Williams, who suffered extensive head and body injuries during a recent motor scooter accident on Fort Hill, Tortola.
Roughly 18 hours ago, former teachers of Williams created a GoFundMe account seeking $12,000 for his medical expenses in Colombia.
The details posted on the page states that the youngster suffered a “fractured skull which is impairing movement on the right side of his body”.
“The ligaments in his knees are torn and need to be reconstructed in order for him to walk again,” the creators of the page said, adding that this type of surgery cannot be executed in the territory. He must be flown to the Spanish-speaking South American country to conduct the operation.
The statement copied to the GoFundMe account also indicated that the National Health Insurance (NHI) would be covering 80 percent of his surgery expenses, leaving the remaining 20 percent for his mother to cover.
“It is our desire to help her cover this amount as well as other expenses she’ll encounter while being in Columbia with him,” the statement read.
“We’re asking for the help of our community near and far. Anything you can offer will be greatly appreciated. Thanking you in advance.”
Some $1,501 has been generated so far.
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What a thing
Off to Columbia for surgery? Only needs $12k. Sounds a little fishy to me. Why didn’t he go to Cuba or any of the other Afro/Caribbean institutes of Medical insanity?
So that’s $48,000 out of the gov’t coffers for presumably a non-helmet wearer – looking at the injuries!
Yep…crazy isn’t it?
When will the law requiring scooter riders to wear helmets be enforced? This young man could so easily have lost his life. Will the Youth ever learn?? They were all over the place racing through CGB on the weekend.
Let me say this upfront: I don’t wish to appear insensitive to this young mans plight, as I am not trying to be. I hope he gets the help he needs, and recovers fully.
However, while there is never a good time to say this, something needs to be said about these young men who time after time are either getting killed or seriously injured in scotter accidents.
I have lost count as to how many have died and were buried by their parents, as well as how many have been seriously injured requiring expensive medical treatment quite often abroad.
You drive about Tortola and routinely encounter a scooter driver driving recklessly, overtaking blindly, not wearing proper head gear, and driving stupidly to no where.
There are consequences to everything we do in this life, and many of these scooter drivers needs to drive more responsible. Many are a danger to the general driving public, and many are causing their parents significant grief and financial stress.
No matter how many have died or were injured prior, it appears that facts falls on deaf ears and blind eyes to many who still ride scooters.
How many more have to die or be seriously injured before something, anything, is done to save lives? This young man is the latest injured, but he will not be the last sadly.
This is a serious problem among these young men, and I do not see any serious efforts on anyone’s part to address this problem.
While each person has a responsibility to ride responsibly, clearly something has to be done to decrease these accidents and deaths, or the deaths and serious injuries and financial losses will continue.
Again, I wish this young man a full recovery, and I am sorry his mom has to be dealing with this issue.
I do wonder however, how many more will have to die or be seriously injured before something is done in this country to reverse this terrible trend of death and serious injures to these young men.
You have some good points. But, these riders are not little children, they are boys behaving like men..so nobody should have to tell them to not steal scooters or to stop riding recklessly. Also, the government seem to be turning a blind eye
In an ideal world, one would think that you should not have to tell people not to steal scooters or ride recklessly. The truth is however, they have to be told and the laws enforced or else we will continue to read about their deaths and injuries.
I agree the government appears to be turning a blind eye, and that is not good.
We all have a role to play here, as each death or injury affects us all. How? We all pay into the NHI, but no one contributes the kind of money in any given year to cover the medical bills for those injured or killed.
We all are paying for this collectively as a society, and the NHI cannot be sustained if it is incurring such high medical expenses for the younger insured who have not paid into the system in significant amounts.
These young people are consuming more in medical expenses that they are putting in to put it simple.
So, what can be done:
1. Law enforcement needs to enforce current laws relative to bike licensing and insurance, and the wearing of proper head gear.
2. Some people should stop attacking the police when they go after these guys for violating the law.
3. Each scooter rider should be required to attend a mandatory driving safety course prior to initial license and renewal.
4. Violators of the traffic laws (not just scooter riders should face the possibility of having their driving privileges suspended based on an accumulated point system for various traffic offenses.
5. The government proper need to engage in a public safety campaign.
6. The government proper should seriously see this problem as a public health emergency and treat it as such. Along those lines, rather than contemplating legalizing scooters with higher capacity engines, address this problem with the lesser capacity engine bikes.
and,
7. Institute an organ donor program, and I do not mean this in a mean spirited way. Accidents will always happen no matter what is done, but for accident victims or those who die prematurely, a donor organ program can help save lives.
While the BVI is not known for organ transplantation surgery, at least in one area, such a program needs to be developed.
There are many people in the BVI whose kidneys have failed them and are on dialysis 3 times a week. All of these young people dying could help save lives or extend them if they/families would allow their organs (in this example) kidneys to be donated, and get as many people off of dialysis.
Truthfully, I think we all should consider becoming an organ donar, facilitation by a simply yes or no question at the time we register/re-register for our drivers licences.
The is much that can be done. I am sure others have other thoughts, but we should not accept as a society all of these young men dying or being seriously injured in the streets forever. We should not turn a blind eye to the problem despite many of us are frustrated with the actions of many scooter riders.
Parents stop buying these toys for your little brats. You are responsible for this also . Proper riding gear … the consequence should be the bike sent to recycling . I am tired of paying for this crap !!
Apparently it’s not always the parents who are buying them….the wicked children are stealing the bikes
In which case any parent with even a piece of a brain would remove the bike
So you going come in my house with a stolen bike? No suh, I calling police for you, my child or not. The parents enabling. When I was young, if I even brought a pencil home that wasn’t mine my mother would make me return it.
There should be a clause in NHI that if injuries occur during illegal activities cover is not available, why so we pay for someone who doesn’t follow the law and wear a helmet or even have a license/insure a bike , remember the bike is missing from scene of accident and now they want us to pay for not raising their child right
Do not give a dime ,its about time the bvi show these youths some tough love. Wear a helmet and stop riding recklessly.
Its always better to be wearing a helmet and not need it than to need a helmet and not be wearing it. All the best to this young man…
Think aboutit before being a nuisance to society.
I prefer to let natural selection take its course, or as the old folks say who don’t hear will feel
Another no helmet i***t
damn youths and these bikes. I am saddened but at the same time not sorry about what happened. they’re too reckless.
Just the other day one of them came around a blind corner with his leg stretched out in the road. He watched me and kept about his merry way.
I am so missing the lockdown. There was such peace and tranquility without hearing those scooters and ATV etc.
Can you imagine the noise with the big bikes if they do approve their legality? Especially on a Sunday when these guys seem to feel they own the road.
I think the government really needs to rethink legalizing the bigger bikes.
I’ll donate a helmet, nothing more.
I wouldn’t give a cent to these numbskulls , they are a constant danger and think they are immortal , news flash , your not , i actually reckonize that rider, he was a arragant b*stard who rode the bike like he was gods gift to humanity , well i for one will not be sorry to never see him again the roads are now safer far as i am concerned
Also the police are failing in their duty to all of us and the law when a scooter goes past with out a helmet on, first page of the scooter section of the BVI highway code states a helmet MUST be worn at all times , any scooter with out a helmet on is a criminal and must be dealt with