‘Christmas not looking so bright’ – hit-and-run victim

It has been a little over three months since the day that Dwaine Ellis was struck by a motor vehicle while he voluntarily engaged in beautification works at St Catherine Primary School, along White Church Street in Spanish Town.

He was among a group of individuals who were working along the roadway ahead of the reopening of school in September, engaged in activities such as painting of the kerb and brightening the faded pedestrian crossing for students to utilise.

The accident resulted in a broken wrist and ankle, with injuries also to his head and back.

In an interview with The Gleaner, Ellis, who is also the president of the school’s parent-teacher association, shared that despite having his casts removed nine weeks after the incident, his psychological and emotional health have not been the same.

He confessed that “Christmas not looking so bright”, as he is faced with a pile-up of medical bills, a mortgage, and other daily expenses.

The 45-year-old said that this, coupled with his recent divorce and the possibility of not seeing his 10-year-old son and 14-year-old daughter for the holidays, has weighed heavily on him.

“Both of my kids are not here with me, so I’m not so much in the Christmas mood ... I just kind of mentally block myself from that. However, whatever small token I get, I will try to make them feel the gift of Christmas ... but for the most part of it, it’s not worth celebrating for me,” he said dispiritedly.

Speaking in relation to the accident, Ellis expressed that the motorist was said to be making a left turn, coming from Barrett Street on to White Church Street where he and others were working on the left side of the pedestrian crossing.

He said that despite barriers being placed in the area to indicate work was being done, the motorist “burst through” and “came down” on him.

“I was saying to the person, you can’t go down there, see the traffic block up there, you [have to] just make a U-Turn then proceed to the library (St Catherine Parish Library, located on Red Church Street), and come back ‘round. I was trying to get out of the way but the person speed up, hit me, [and] I fell on the bonnet (of the car),” he said.

“The person tried to swing me off the car and I tried to hold on for dear life,” Ellis continued, adding that the motorist eventually “slammed down” on his brake pedal, which caused him to fall off the car.

“I was trying to find myself [to] get up, but I couldn’t get up,” he recounted, noting that someone on location had to assist him in getting up from the ground and to the Spanish Town Hospital.

He detailed that the experience was very traumatising.

“You would have only seen those things in watching a movie [where] a man was being swung on the bonnet and get lick off; and that man would get up and run off or continue chasing the person. But, unfortunately, in my situation I needed help, and I had to rush to the hospital,” he said.

Ellis continued that the healing process was also another point in which he was down in spirit.

“From the period of the accident [and] not being able to move for so long, it plays on your mind. You start seeing the little things that you aren’t supposed to see ... it’s just the constant laying down and not being able to do what you’d want to,” he recalled.

So for some time, Ellis has been unemployed. And worse, he is now unable to work.

“My wrist is not even back to normal, and now they are contemplating operation. But the trauma, it’s playing on me, so really and truly I don’t think I’m in the best frame of mind [to do the operation],” he said.

Ellis was employed to a private-sector organisation, where he worked as a contracted server whenever the need arose, as the organisation would occasionally host events.

“Since the accident, I am not able to work because my left hand was the one that was broken. And in serving, a lot of persons don’t even know that to carry a waiter, your left hand becomes your strong point and your right hand becomes your balance, so I was unable to perform my duties,” he explained.

Ellis is currently in need of assistance and is hopeful that persons will consider blessing him in whatever way they can for the holiday season.

asha.wilks@gleanerjm.com