Death toll rises in West Kingston

Paul-André Walker, Rural Editor

Dead men tell no tales, and today, there are many from west Kingston communities who have nothing to say.

By 12:30 yesterday afternoon, 28 bodies had come to the Kingston Public Hospital (KPH) and the betting was that there would be many more.

Not long after, the body of a young man, with bloodstains on his merino and his feet sticking out from the back of a police truck, made 29.

"A likkle in front o' my yard a youth lay dung inna di road all now. Di youth from up a Fitzie gate," said one man, as he watched the proceedings at the KPH.

The man allegedly lying in the road in Tivoli went by the moniker 'Prince'.

"'Prince' shoulda in a him yaad then, man," said another. Both wished to remain nameless.

Regularly breaking the conversation of the two men was the not-so-distant sound of gunfire, sending some, including a CVM television crew, ducking for cover.

running for cover

It was soon to get closer, as police and gunmen in the Fletcher's Land area of west Kingston traded bullets, much to the chagrin of those at the front of KPH who were sent running for cover.

Soon enough, support for the police arrived and the gunmen were driven back.

The storyteller from Tivoli could now go back to speaking about the unfortunate plight of those in the community.

"I jus' see two truck full o' dead man! In all my 50-odd years pon di Earth, mi neva see so much dead people," said the man, sincerity obvious in his tone.

According to police reports, 26 deaths could be confirmed. But Jamaica's public defender told The Gleaner last night that there have been at least 44 deaths linked to the assault on Tivoli and its outskirts.

Tanny Shirley, chairman of the South East Regional Health Authority (SERHA), said that while the hospital had enough equipment to treat the injured, there was a transportation problem that threatened how much manpower would be available.

"It is very challenging. The staff is working under adverse circumstances," he said.

"The staff has been working for 48 hours and there are problems bringing in new staff to replace them," said Shirley.

ambulance carrying staff

According to the SERHA chairman, he has had to resort to using ambulances to bring staff to the hospital.

"You must accept that there is a security issue in bringing new people in. The security we use are also being targeted and, of course, there is also the obvious fear," he added.

At 3 p.m. Tuesday, Shirley said there were 19 patients being treated for injuries received during incidents in west Kingston. Fourteen of those had been shot.

That figure did not include a young man brought in on a gurney by the police, nor did it include another boy (see photo on Page A4) who had been shot in the mouth at the intersection of Collie Smith Drive and Ninth Street in Trench Town. And as the conflict continued, it was clear that the numbers would climb.

At Camp Road and South Camp Road, traffic was hastily diverted because of gunfire.

According to a senior cop, the gunmen were firing at a police team inside Woodford Park and those in the Mobile Reserve premises gave their colleagues assistance.

Up to press time, it was not clear if anyone had been shot in the incident.

paul-andre.walker@gleanerjm.com