Grieving deputy fire chief urges Jamaicans to unite against road carnage

MONTEGO BAY, St James — New St James deputy fire chief Superintendent O’Neil Henry is all too familiar with the carnage that can take place on the roads, having recently lost his son and his son’s girlfriend in a crash. With that memory still fresh in his mind, Henry used Thursday’s monthly meeting of the St James Municipal Corporation to call for a united approach to addressing the problem. Henry attributed the crashes to a combination of poor road conditions and dangerous driving. “We have to find a way, in conjunction with the police, to educate these drivers who are driving on the road,” he urged. “We know that speeding will kill and it will hurt, so the Jamaica Fire Brigade, in collaboration with the Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF), the other ministries, other agencies, and the St James Municipal Corporation, we have to find a way to reach out to those persons within our scope and see how we can educate them on driving safely,” added Henry. According to Henry, his team was among first responders at seven crashes in September, down from 12 in August. However, added to his concerns is an out-of-service ambulance that has left his team hobbled. “Our emergency medical service (EMS) is currently not in operation due to our ambulance having an accident. We are repairing the ambulance, we are working on it.

St James deputy fire chief Superintendent O’Neil Henry speaking during Thursday’s monthly meeting of the St James Municipal Corporation.

In short order we will have that ambulance up and running, and that also will help in our service when it comes on to, especially, motor vehicle accidents,” the senior firefighter said. In responding to his passionate appeal, Deputy Mayor Dwight Crawford told the meeting of Henry’s recent loss. His son O’Neil Henry Jr and his girlfriend, 25- year-old Alicia Dormer of Westgate Hills in St James, died from injuries sustained in a crash on the Braco main road in Trelawny on August 17. “We issue our condolence to you and the family,” said Crawford as other councillors added their expressions of sympathy. In accepting their show of support Henry reiterated his appeal for a joint approach to addressing the problem. “We are asking for us to be a unit and try to see how much we can assist in lessening motor vehicle accidents in our parish and in our surroundings,” he said. In its latest update the Island Traffic Authority (ITA) reported that as of October 9 Jamaica has recorded 227 fatal crashes, resulting in the loss of 263 lives. This represents a 13 per cent reduction when compared to the corresponding period in 2025. Manager of corporate communications and public relations at the ITA Dontae Matthews urged all road users to remain alert in their daily commute, and shared that the entity is fully committed to supporting targeted enforcement initiatives and continuing public education efforts to promote safer road usage. “Through sustained collaboration with public and private sector partners, the authority will continue to champion initiatives that encourage lasting behaviour change and help reduce preventable crashes and fatalities,” said Matthews.