Family, friends mourning two men following fatal crash on Ring Road
Syed Muhammad Ali Shah Bukhari was giving two of his friends a ride home to the south end of the city even though he lived in the north end, because he was just that kind of guy.
“He was a very friendly person. He was always wearing a beautiful smile, always treats you with respect, always meets you and greets you well,” said Hassan Siddiqui, a close friend of Bukhari’s, during a phone interview on Tuesday.
Bukhari was killed when the vehicle he was driving crashed into the ditch off of the south Ring Road between Albert Street South and Wascana Parkway shortly after midnight on March 2.
Bukhari, 23, was declared dead at the scene of the crash. The two passengers, a 22-year-old man and 24-year-old man, were taken to hospital.
On Monday, police confirmed the 22-year-old man, who had been critically injured, died in hospital on Sunday. Siddiqui and a Gofundme page have identified him as Harsh Sharma.
He was a student living in Regina, while his family resides in India. The Gofundme, started by Shae Foster, has been made to help Sharma’s family with expenses to transport his body back home to India.
The third man, whom Siddiqui identified as Brijesh Patel, is still in hospital with serious injuries.
Bukhari had gotten engaged the week before the fatal crash.
He had been planning to get married sometime in April.
He was working for a telecommunications company, and had a wide circle of friends in the city. He was a graduate from Campbell Collegiate, and had also studied at Saskatchewan Polytechnic.
Siddiqui said people from as far as Calgary, Edmonton and Toronto travelled to Regina to attend Bukhari’s funeral.
Residents have been raising concerns on social media about the section of Ring Road where the crash happened.
Those worries include the curve of the road and a lack of lighting. Concerns over lighting were previously brought to Regina city council in 2015, when 17-year-old Katie Boehm died in a crash on the same stretch of road.
Siddiqui, who is studying to become an environmental engineer, agreed with the concerns being raised by the public.
“That spot is pretty dangerous,” said Siddiqui.
“Once there is black ice, it’s very very difficult to control your car over there. Especially when there is no lights and stuff, you can’t see anything. That curve should have at least a sign saying a sharp turn ahead or something like that,” suggested Siddiqui.
Siddiqui said his brother was also involved in a crash in the area last October, but thanks to there being a lot of snow at the time, he survived.
On March 5, the City of Regina issued a release saying a previously announced project to install lighting along Ring Road between Wascana Parkway and Albert Street South would begin this week, weather permitting. It is expected to be finished by the end of July.