WASHED AWAY
Arnett Gardens family in distress after youth seeking to retrieve football disappears in floodwaters
Published:Thursday | July 4, 2024 | 12:09 AMEdmond Campbell/Senior Staff Reporter
A St Andrew family is in distress as they anxiously await word on the fate of Alrick Moncrieffe, a 20-year-old who was washed away by floodwaters on Wednesday in Havana, Arnett Gardens.
Moncrieffe, otherwise called ‘Kalonji’ and ‘Lala’, was playing football with friends on Wednesday when the ball fell into a gully and he rushed to retrieve it.
However, when he entered the gully, the force of the water, which swelled as a result of the heavy rains associated with Hurricane Beryl, reportedly carried him away.
Moncrieffe’s sister, who asked not to be named, told The Gleaner that her brother had just left the home to play football with friends when shortly after the family was informed that he was washed away by floodwaters.
When The Gleaner visited the area late Wednesday evening, concerned friends and relatives were seen on Wednesday rushing to and from the May Pen Cemetery, through which the Collie Smith Drive gully takes floodwaters before emptying it into the sea, in a frantic effort to locate the missing youngster.
Teams from the Jamaica Fire Brigade and Jamaica Defence Force were also assisting in the search effort up to nightfall.
A security guard with the company called McKay, Moncrieffe worked at the KFC outlet in Cross Roads.
The Gleaner understands that Moncrieffe, a goalkeeper, at one point played for the Arnett Gardens Football Club.
The Gleaner was told that Moncrieffe stayed home yesterday as a curfew was in place owing to the passage of Hurricane Beryl.
When our news team visited Moncrieffe’s home in Arnett Gardens, his sister said the family would not lose hope as they await word that he has been rescued.
He is described as a “calm, humble and a loving person”, who is loved by members of the community.