Father of three Mukesh Nanan sacrificed his own life to save the lives of his son and two other teenagers yesterday morning, his relatives said.

Nanan, 45, was killed when his vehicle crashed head on into an out-of-control car along Rivulet Road, Couva, around 3 a.m.

The occupants of the other vehicle, two women, were unhurt.

Nanan, of Mussai Trace, Williamsville, was the third person to be killed in vehicular accidents at the weekend.

Police said Nanan was taken to the Couva District Hospital, where he was pronounced dead on arrival. His son,18-year-old Nicholas, and two friends — Mikkel Rampersad, 16, and Ravi Dass, 17 — escaped with minor injuries. They were treated and discharged from hospital.

Relatives said Nicholas Nanan suffered injuries to his face and broken teeth.

"My son wanted to save the children in the car. He give his own life to make sure nothing happened to his son and the other two children,'' his mother, 63-year-old Gulin Nanan, said yesterday.

Relatives said Nanan, a taxi driver, dropped off his son and two friends at a restaurant in Couva. Nicholas Nanan, a deejay, was hired to play music at a birthday party.

"He drop them off and come home and sleep. Then Nicholas called and Mukesh get up and went for him. Then his wife get a call that they were in an accident. We get the call about four o'clock this morning,'' Gulin Nanan said.

Nanan's wife, Natasha, and his children Nicholas, Melissa, 15, and Melinda, 11, were shocked by his death. His mother, a vendor at the San Fernando market, was inconsolable.

"My son will drop and pick me up from the market. He will take me anywhere I want to go. He never drink alcohol in his life. He was a blessed child. Now I don't have him again. God please send my child back,'' she cried yesterday. Nanan was the first of three children.

Couva police visited the scene and are continuing investigations.