The last of the beloved band of parang brothers, Willie Lara, died yesterday afternoon at the age of 84. Lara, along with siblings Tito, Toy and Victor, comprised the legendary Lara Brothers, whose indigenous music was popular during the Christmas season. Lara died at the Eric Williams Medical Sciences Complex, Mt Hope, after going for medical tests on Monday.
His step-daughter Antoinette Pereira told the T&T Guardian that the family observed the cultural icon’s hands swollen and wanted to ensure all was okay with him. Part of the procedure while he was hospitalised, she said, was to insert a camera that would look at his heart to ensure there were no abnormalities.
However, Pereira said when Lara was coming out of the anesthesia, he experienced an irregular heart rate and another dose of anesthesia was used in order to sedate him. He was then taken to ICU for monitoring and on Thursday he was transferred to the High Dependency Unit. Lara passed away at 1.15 pm yesterday. “He was not ailing. So this is a shock for all of us,” Pereira said. She said the family was devastated by the loss. Lara was the father of eight children