Death On A Goan Highway

WARNING: Don't read this if you expect a happy, jolly post. It isn't. This post is about something tragic that I had the misfortune of stumbling upon. So if you're squemish, please just close the window.

After that great Thanksgiving dinner I told you about, I hired a taxi to take me from Baga Beach to my hotel in Tanjim. My driver was a very nice young guy who quickly zipped us off towards my destination. The taxi's in Goa include these very tiny little vans (think clown van), as well as the usual SUV and Auto-rickshaws. Many other tourists simply rent scooters or mopeds and drive themselves. As we were flying along the roads, he was playing me some Hindi music that had quite a beat to it. We were talking about random things and I was trying to find a seat belt. There were none. So I was sitting low, kind of hoping he'd slow down, but also aware that the roads were empty.

An SUV taxi overtook and passed us. He was clearly in a bigger hurry than we were. He continued on the right (wrong) side to pass some cows who were out for a late night jog. My driver said it's common to kind of "draft" off the cows because they usually just run straight and it's safer. We cleared the cows too, and I thought to myself "Those are some damned fit cows!"

About two minutes later I heard a very short screech and a load bang. I couldn't tell if it was in front or behind me, but I did notice we were stopping VERY quickly and that the SUV was now stopped in front of us. As we swerved around it, I looked to my left and saw a scooter down in front of the SUV and two guys laying on the ground. I told my driver to stop so I could see if I could help in anyway. My first aid and CPR skills are a bit rusty, but I figured they were better than nothing.

I jumped out and ran back and saw the driver of the scooter on the ground. He was wearing sunglasses and had on his cell phone ear piece. His right arm was raised above his head and he was clearly dead. The SUV driver was out and screaming about how they had been on the wrong side of the road and he had no chance. The scooter passenger was moaning, but not moving. Their friends, who'd been in front of them on scooters, quickly showed up and were screaming, shocked at the site of their friends. I knew it was a bad situation that was only going to get worse.

I pushed my driver back towards the van and we left. He called the police on his mobile to report the accident (no one had called it in yet) and we headed to my hotel. He was visibly upset, and I could see him shaking. He started to pray and I put my hand on his shoulder and said nothing. He also said he was going to drive much slower, a point I was hardly going to argue over.

When all is said and done, two young professionals, enjoying a holiday with their buddies, lost their lives on that dark stretch of highway. My point? Stop taking life for granted and live it to its fullest.