By DENISE MAYCOCK

Tribune Freeport Reporter

dmaycock@tribunemedia.net

A 16-year-old resident of Fox Town, Abaco was tragically killed by a motorist on Sunday evening while walking home after playing basketball.

Zion Wellington Pratt was thrown several feet into bushes after being hit by a “speeding car” on the S C Bootle Highway shortly after 10pm. He died at the scene.

Edith Clarke, the boy’s mother, is devastated and said before her son left home, he hugged and kissed her for the last time.

“He came to me yesterday and hugged and kissed me, and squeezed me like it was the last time he was going to see me, and I told him, ‘don’t put no COVID on me.’ He is an angel now,” she said.

According to police reports, shortly after 10pm officers at the Cooper’s Town Police Station were called to a traffic accident at S C Bootle Highway, where the body of a male was found some eight feet in the bushes.

It was reported that the male victim was walking, with a female, on the road when he was struck by a silver coloured Honda Accord, driven by a male who was travelling in a westerly direction.

The vehicle sustained extensive damage, and the driver reportedly fled the scene after the accident, but later returned.

Michelle McIntosh, chairperson for Little Abaco Township, said the incident was a very tragic one for the Fox Town community. “This is the first time that a teen was killed in the area like this and a lot of people are shocked,” she said.

According to eyewitness reports, the victim’s mother, along with several family members, were distraught when officers would not let them see their loved one.

Zion was the second of four children to Ms Clarke, who is distraught over her son’s death.

“I am not doing good and I am distancing myself right now from everyone,” she said yesterday when contacted by The Tribune.

“It was a nightmare last night when I got the news that my boy was knocked down. . .I went to the clinic in Fox Town, but it was dark and locked.

“When I looked up the street, I saw a crowd of boys in the street… and I ask them if they see Zion, they say they are looking for him. I said to myself if they are looking for him, that can’t be good.”

Ms Clarke started to make her way to the clinic in Cooper’s Town, but got a call to turn back.

“They told me to come back because they found the body; when I returned they were putting tarp on him,” she recalled.

Ms Clarke said she lost it and fell to the ground and began praying.

She described her son as a “fun-loving and caring” person who brought excitement and joy wherever he went. He was an 11th grade student at SC Bootle High. He was also a member of Urban Renewal Marching Band.

According to Ms Clarke, she relocated with her son to Abaco last July from Grand Bahama due to “a gang situation” at St George’s High School.

“He did not want to come at first, but I had no choice because of the gang situation at St Georges,” she explained. “He was a normal child that liked to have fun. He was a fun-loving child.”

Ms Clarke said her son’s spirit will forever remain with her.

She expressed concern over the conditions of the road in Fox Town. “That road is dangerous,” she complained.

Ms Clarke said there are no streetlights on the road, no entrance gate at the settlement, and no speed bumps in the school zone where the accident occurred.

“He was playing basketball with his friends, and was on his way home when the car came and was overtaking another car and hit him,” she claimed.

“There are no lights, no bumps - no nothing and there are curves, and the road is very dangerous. It is just wide open and there is no stopping, and people just speed right through,” said Ms Clarke.

She also noted that when she was initially contacted about the accident, she attempted to call 911 and 919 but said she learned the island has no access to any of those emergency numbers. “I had to call (West Grand Bahama MP) Pakesia Parker-Edgecombe…,” she said.

The Tribune made attempts to contact Darren Henfield, MP for North Abaco, however, he did not return our calls up to press time.