Updated: 7:34am – Every day at 7am Ivamere Tikiyasa got her bread for breakfast from her favourite son, Samuela Nadidi, a Sunbeam Bus checker.
Mr Nadidi would get off the bus at his village, Nasautoka, Wainibuka, Tailevu and deliver the bread.
Yesterday the bread didn’t arrive and there was no sign of Mr Nadidi. He was killed in a freak accident in Waito Village not far from his village on Monday afternoon after he had delivered her last bread in the morning.
Mr Nadidi went to retrieve a receipt book blown out of the bus by the wind.
He was behind the bus when it allegedly reversed and killed him. He died from the injuries he suffered. Police confirmed the driver was in custody.
A blanket of silence fell over Nasautoka village in Tailevu yesterday as residents mourned the untimely death of one of their own.
Ms Tikiyasi could not hide her grief. She said: “Who is going to look after my five young grandchildren. He was our pillar of strength.
“The village will remember him as a very jovial guy, full of energy and humour. “I remember how he said ‘yadra na’ every morning to me before he went to work. “I don’t know what will happen now. I am truly lost.”
Ms Tikiyasa seemed to be in disbelief that her son was dead.
Before leaving home that fatal morning, the crying mum said her son promised to call her later in the afternoon. But he didn’t.
Mr Nadidi is survived by his wife, Ulamila Qivi, and five young children, three of whom attend primary school in Nadi. Ms Qivi, was on her way to Nasautoka from Nadi yesterday. They live in Nadi but they are originally from Nasautoka.
Mr Nadidi’s brother, Joni Waqavolau, also a checker with Sunbeam, said the family was still shocked.
Sunbeam supervisor Sanjay Nand said the company greatly missed Mr Nadidi because he was a loyal and hardworking man. He said Mr Nadidi was a popular figure with passengers because he was a warm and friendly person and it would be difficult to replace him.
Mr Nadidi’s death brings the current road death toll to 61, compared to 50 for the same period last year.
Police Spokesperson Ana Naisoro said she would not comment on the accident as investigations were ongoing.
The bus was travelling on the Kings Road from Rakiraki towards Korovou Town.
As the sun began to set yesterday and night fell, Ms Tikiyasa felt an emptiness without Mr Nadidi. She had cried, cried and cried. She dreaded the crack of dawn today because it would remind her of the good times – her bread and her favourite son.
-Fiji Sun
Featured image: Daughters of the deceased Matila Nadidi (left) and Ivamere Nadidi (right) with their grandmother Ivamere Tikiyasa at Nasautoka Village, Wainibuka Tailevu, on November 28, 2017. Photo: Sheldon Chanel.
