Two dead, 17 injured in St James crash - 12 students, five adults hospitalised
Published:Tuesday | September 17, 2019 | 12:17 AMHopeton Bucknor/Gleaner Writer
Western Bureau:
TWO DRIVERS perished yesterday after a motor car got out of control and crashed head-on into a minibus along the Flankers main road in St James. Twelve students and five adults were also injured in the crash.
According to eyewitnesses, about 4 p.m, they heard a bang and turned around to see an airborne Toyota Corolla motor car slamming into the bus, which was loaded with schoolchildren and several adults heading home to Flankers from downtown Montego Bay.
“Mi just hear the sound and turn around and see the car in the air, heading into the bus,” a fruit vendor told The Gleaner. “It look like it climb the median ... and get out a control. It was flying when I saw it.”
The driver of an AD wagon, which was travelling behind the ill-fated car, also lost control of his vehicle, which crashed into the Corolla. That driver escaped with minor injuries.
The fruit vendor and other persons in the vicinity rushed to the assistance of the 12 students and six adults – including the bus driver – who sustained varying degrees of injury. They were rushed to the Cornwall Regional Hospital.
The car driver, Oneil Henry of a Famouth, Trelawny, address, died on the spot, while the bus driver, Anthony Forbes of Flankers, died at hospital.
“From our preliminary observation, it appears the driver of the Toyota Corolla was speeding and lost control of the vehicle,” a police officer told The Gleaner. “It is unfortunate that one person died, but it could have been a lot worse because several other persons were seriously injured.”
Since the start of this year, 27 persons have perished in 15 traffic accidents in St James. Thirteen persons were killed over the corresponding period last year.