By LEANDRA ROLLE 

Tribune Chief Reporter 

lrolle@tribunemedia.net

A FATHER-of-four was killed in a car crash in Eleuthera on Friday just weeks after his wife died - leaving their family devastated by the double tragedy.

Ferde Julien, 58, reportedly crashed into a tree off Queen’s Highway Friday night while driving home after socialising.

Police said they found him unresponsive and injured in his extensively damaged vehicle.

His nephew, Ervin Bain, said the death has dealt a double blow to the family, still mourning his wife who died only two weeks earlier.

“It’s very hard to cope with things like that because the loss of two parents, like a lot of persons never went through it before,” he told The Tribune yesterday. “So the coping process is very difficult and you can’t tell people everything is going to be okay.”

Mr Bain said his uncle took his wife’s death hard even though he didn’t show it outwardly.

Originally from Haiti, Julien and his wife had been together since moving to The Bahamas in the 1990s.

A carpenter, he moved to Eleuthera for work five years ago and had hoped to buy land to build a home for his family.

Two nights before his death, he called his family to check in, something he did often.

Relatives said they learned about the crash from people in the area who recognised his vehicle.

“We didn’t want to believe it,” Mr Bain said.

He added the family is still unsure what caused the crash, noting concerns about poor road conditions and the lack of street lights in the area.

Mr Bain said relatives plan to meet with police officials today to get more information.

The family said they will miss his quiet loving personality the most.

“He basically was a mild mannered, intelligent human being. He loved politics. He loved

his family, who was always number one,” his nephew said.

This latest traffic fatality brings the country’s death toll to 51 for the year, according to The Tribune’s records.