( L - R ) Lisa Leslie, Carey Dawes

Lisa Leslie and Carey Dawes, both 18, were killed and seven others injured in a motor vehicle accident along the Petersfield main road near Bullet Tree, Westmoreland about 11:40, Saturday night.

They were reportedly killed when the Toyota Sprinter they were travelling in, swerved to avoid hitting a vehicle it was behind.

There were no witnesses to the crash but, based on investigations, the Savanna-la-Mar police theorised that three cars were travelling in a line, very fast along the roadway, when the front car reportedly braked suddenly.

Beyond recognition

The police believe that the Sprinter, which was in the middle, swerved left to avoid a hit, slammed into a culvert and rolled some five chains, crushing the vehicle beyond recognition depositing Dawes and Leslie in the process. Two other occupants were in the car. They were hospitalised.

The car at the back, a Toyota Corolla, swerved right to avoid a collision but also got out of control and slammed into a culvert. Five persons in that vehicle were hospitalised.

It could not be ascertained whether the front car was damaged or if it stopped.

People walk past a badly damaged Toyota Corolla in which five people were injured along the Petersfield main road, in Westmoreland on Saturday night. - Dalton Laing photos