TRAGIC

WESTERN BUREAU:

A St Catherine mother’s journey to Westmoreland to participate in a cousin’s wedding turned into a painful nightmare after her three-year-old son was crushed by a large gate in a freak accident on Wednesday, hours before the event.

The infant has been identified as Liam Williams, of an Old Harbour address in St Catherine.

Reports are that, on Wednesday morning, Liam, his older brother and a cousin were playing with a ball in the yard at a family home in New Market Oval in Savanna-la-Mar, Westmoreland.

The ball reportedly ran out onto the roadway and the youngsters went to retrieve it and were in the process of re-entering the yard when they slammed the large metal gate, which immediately broke off and fell on top of Liam.

The infant, who suffered head and body injuries, was rushed to the Savanna-la-Mar Public General Hospital where he died while being treated.

A distraught Natalie Jones told The Gleaner on Thursday that she had left her son behind and had gone to purchase some food items when she got the shocking phone call.

“Mi just leave him, him brother and one of him cousin at mi mother’s house and went to get some stuff on the road,” the grieving mom said, still in disbelief.

“I was talking to his father on the phone, and, as soon as I end the call, mi get another call and the person on the line a scream out, ‘Natalie! Natalie! The baby! The baby!’,” she recalled.

Jones said that she then rushed home and, after being informed of the tragic events, she headed to the hospital. Minutes after her arrival, a doctor told her that her son had died.

“I cannot eat nor sleep since Liam dead. Is like a big hole inna mi heart and every time mi chest just a close up pon mi, and mi can’t breathe,” she said, crying.

“Mi used to him every night come lie down beside mi, and inna the morning time, him would come lie down pon top a mi. I just don’t know what mi going do,” she added.

The mother of three said that she travelled from her home in Old Harbour, St Catherine, last week to participate in the wedding. She said that the wedding still went ahead on Wednesday afternoon, but it was not as joyful as the family had planned, as it was overshadowed by the tragedy.

hopeton.bucknor@gleanerjm.com