On a crisp Monday morning at Entrepôt Secondary School, the entire school community set aside their usual routine to come together for an extraordinary gathering: a multi-faith prayer service held to uplift two of their own, who are fighting to recover from severe, life-altering injuries sustained in a multi-vehicle road collision last week.
The crash, which unfolded in the Cas En Bas neighborhood at approximately 4:50 p.m. on Friday, September 18, left three pedestrians injured, among them 5th-form student Tatiyanna Innocent and first-year student Jeanquan Jn Pierre. According to Saint Lucia Police authorities, the collision began when a white Toyota Hilux and a black Mitsubishi Lancer, traveling in opposite directions, crashed head-on. The out-of-control vehicles then struck two parked construction vehicles before hitting the group of walking pedestrians. In the aftermath of the crash, Jeanquan underwent an emergency amputation of one foot due to the severity of his injuries. Both young students were rushed to a local hospital with critical wounds, and have since been transferred out of the intensive care unit into a general inpatient ward, a small but hopeful update shared by the school’s principal, Arthur Scott.
News of the crash and the students’ injuries has hit the Entrepôt Secondary campus hard. Many classmates have struggled to process the tragedy, with Scott noting that the incident has sparked deep introspection across the student body: “Our students are impacted by that. Some of them are really in reflection mode. It could have been them.” To support students navigating the grief and anxiety of this event, mental health counsellors from across the island have been brought in to provide one-on-one and group support to help the school community cope.
At present, visits to the injured students remain restricted, as their open wounds leave them vulnerable to infection. Scott emphasized that despite the limited access, the entire school stands in solidarity with Tatiyanna, Jeanquan, and their families through this grueling ordeal. “They know that we are there with them, and we are trying our best to make sure that they get the necessary support that is needed at this time,” he said.
In a public appeal, Scott has called on community members across Saint Lucia to contribute any support they can to ease the significant burden the students’ families are facing as they begin what will be a long road to recovery. Even small acts of kindness, from messages of well-wish to material support, can make a profound difference for the young survivors, he noted. Already, alumni of the school and other community members have stepped forward to offer assistance, donating bottled water and nutritional drinks to support the students’ recovery. Moving forward, the school plans to launch an online fundraising campaign to cover the pair’s mounting medical costs and ongoing recovery expenses. “The children truly need a lot of help in getting back on their feet and living normal lives,” Scott added.
Beyond the appeal for support for the two students, Scott used the moment to urge all road users in Saint Lucia to exercise greater caution when driving, and called for systemic changes to improve safety for students traveling to and from school. “We have to be looking out for each other,” he said. “We need to be a more caring society.”