The highway between San Pedro de Macoris and La Romana was the scene of one of the most tragic accidents in recent memory. A total of seven people are reported to have been killed. According to all today’s papers, the accident occurred at Kilometer 14 where the highway crosses the Cumayasa River, when a trailer hauling many tons of scrap metal to Santo Domingo came loose from its hauler and slid backwards, crushing two other vehicles. Sources are not clear as to whether the final destination was the Metaldom Foundry or the wharf in Haina. Rescue workers took over 12 hours to remove the bodies of the deceased and the survivors from the tangled wreckage beneath the bridge, removing boat captain Juan Felix Abraham Dalmasi at 6:50 in the evening. The accident occurred at 7:30 in the morning. Many of the victims were crew-members of Ramon Baez Figueroa’s yacht that is berthed at the Casa de Campo Marina.
Units of the Army, the National Emergency Commission, Civil Defense and local Fire Departments took part in the rescue and recovery efforts.