Bajan Fire Fighters Blog

Barbados’ mass casualty machinery was pressed into action early this afternoon when 23 people were injured in a smash up involving a minibus and a sports utility vehicle. The quiet stretch of Hampton Road, St. Philip became a scene of glass and twisted metal after the two vehicles collided around 1:23 p.m. leaving 22 persons from the bus nursing various injuries. Only one, Nigel Hewitt of 4th Avenue New Orleans, St. Michael, was reported to be in serious condition. (Source: Barbados Today)

The streaming lights, the Christmas carols, the bustling crowds in Bridgetown are a dead give away that the yuletide season is here again. This is a time that evokes a great deal of chatter about the things people cherish the most. Many promises are made and the excitement created is intense. It's a time of giving and sharing and the hope is that the season will bring with it lots of cheer, good health and prosperity.   This expectation may seem utopian. Nevertheless persons are never deterred from trying to attain it. They will spend all and in the end be spent themselves to reach their goal and meet every expectation. In this quest, however, some vulnerability is created which, if left unchecked can bring chaos instead of cheer, horror instead of happiness and poverty instead of prosperity.   Around every festive season, and especially around Christmas, people become so busy and preoccupied with expendables that they lose sight of essential...

The Barbados Fire Service is in possession of a new bus. The 30 seater Nissan vehicle was delivered yesterday morning to Fire Service Headquarters, on Probyn Street, Bridgetown.

Retired Sub-Officer Harold Berkeley Payne was laid to rest yesterday afternoon after a service of thanksgiving at the Coral Ridge Chapel in Christ Church. Several off-duty members of the Barbados Fire Service joined the official Fire Service bearer party, gazetted ranks, relatives and members of the Fairy Valley Wesleyan Holiness Church. Payne 67, of Fairy Valley, Christ Church formerly of Boscobelle, St. Peter died on Tuesday, September 13 at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital and is survived by his wife Coreen Payne and four children. The members and staff of the Barbados Fire Service take this opportunity to extend our heartfelt thanks to the family for the outstanding service rendered by Harold Berkeley Payne.

Roger Corbie, IRP Ltd and Ryan Lovell, Barbados Fire Service Sports Club. IRP Fire & Safety Ltd has partnered with the Barbados Fire Service Sports and Social Club (BFSSSC) as the major sponsor for this year. This announcement was made recently during a brief ceremony at Fire Service Headquarters in Bridgetown. During the ceremony Roger Corbie a representative of IRP Fire & Safety Ltd presented Ryan Lovell, President of the BFSSSC and Lonsdale Blake, Captain of the Fire Service Cricket Team with polo shirts to outfit the entire team. IRP Fire & Safety Ltd represents many well-known international organizations such as MSA, Fike, Williams Fire & Hazard Control and Darley Fire-Fighting Equipment. IRP Fire & Safety Ltd has the only MSA Certified Service Centre in the region. The original company was founded in Trinidad and Tobago in 1973 as Industrial Rubber Products Ltd and later became known to many as IRP. Since then IRP has evolved and grown into providers...

A nearly 6-ton satellite is gradually falling from Earth orbit, and parts of it could crash to the surface as early as Friday, September 23 (today), NASA officials said. NASA officials told ABC News overnight that they won't know where the satellite will hit until two hours before it enters the Earth's atmosphere, moving at 5 miles per second. The space agency's space debris experts predict that at least 26 large pieces of the satellite will survive the scorching temperatures of atmospheric re-entry. But exactly where the UARS satellite debris will fall is uncertain. NASA officials have said that the drop zone for UARS satellite debris could be anywhere between the latitudes of northern Canada and southern South America, an area that includes much of the planet. The satellite should re-enter over a 500-mile (804-kilometer) track, according to NASA officials. Since 75 percent of Earth is covered with ocean, there is a high likelihood that the satellite will re-enter ov...

Come this Sunday, September 25, this country's Fire Service will celebrate 56 years in existence. And to mark the occasion, the department will host several activities under the theme Preserving Our Community Through Service Excellence. The week will begin with divine worship on Sunday at St. Andrew's Anglican Church, Walkers, St. Andrew, beginning at 8:00 a.m. From Monday, September 26, to Wednesday, September 28, there will be a series of open days at all Fire Stations. These will commence at 10:00 a.m. and members of the public will have the opportunity to visit and tour the facilities. Also on September 26, there will be a health extravaganza at the Fire Service's Probyn Street Headquarters, Bridgetown. Visitors can get their cholesterol and blood pressure checked. Massages and pedicures will be offered, and fire safety tips will be exhibited. The following day, Tuesday, September 27, the Airport Fire Station will host an equipment display from 10:00 a.m., whi...

Hurricane Janet the most powerful hurricane of the 1955 Atlantic hurricane season struck on September 22nd, 1955. This hurricane killed 38 people in Barbados and was one of the strongest Atlantic hurricanes on record. The Category 5 hurricane caused catastrophic damage and at least 687 deaths in the Lesser Antilles, Yucatán Peninsula, and mainland Mexico. [The photo above shows Janet's historical track and position on this day in 1955. 13.2N 54.3W.]

Congratulations to Bernard Bowen on his election to the post of Caribbean Regional Director with the International Association of Black Professional Fire Fighters. Bowen is a 30 year veteran firefighter and succeeds former Director Neal Smithwick. The Caribbean Region was incorporated in 1995 and is the 7th Region of the IABPFF.

Today the world reflects on the horrible tragedy that occurred on September 11, 2001. On this the 10th Anniversary we honour the many firefighters, emergency services personnel and civilians whose lives were lost during the events of that day.

Jean Griffith, 78, is counting her lucky stars after being rescued from a car that overturned yesterday morning just off a section of the ABC Highway between the Garfield Sobers Roundabout and the junction of Warners. It was the quick action of Dexter Bishop, who was travelling in the opposite direction, that led to the release of Griffith who was trapped in her car. Bishop said that around 10:34 a.m., while he was driving along the highway, he saw the car lying on its top with the hazard lights flashing. He realized someone was still in the car, so he called for help. Two fire tenders from the Bridgetown headquarters and the Worthing branch, police officers and ambulance personnel responded. Griffith was freed from the car shortly after 11 a.m. and taken to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital. (MM) Source: www.nationnews.com

Fire destroyed a house in Mason Hall Street, The City, yesterday. The blaze left 23-year-old Kenroy Crichlow homeless. In Swan Street Crichlow, not the owner of the house, told the DAILY NATION that he was in the nearby Swan Street, The City, when he was informed about the fire and rushed home. “I was up town and he [a friend] come and tell me to get in the bar [of the bicycle] quick. When I get here everything was burn flat. I had a chance to save nothing. “I don’t have a place to live. I don’t know what to do right now, I really don’t know what to do,” said Crichlow. Two houses were damaged during the blaze, which the Barbados Fire Service responded to around 2:18 p.m. Source: http://www.nationnews.com/

Two individuals may find themselves before the law courts soon for "burning stuff". The local lobby group Citizens Against Burning Stuff told Barbados TODAY that while there are no laws specifically dealing with the burning of stuff, it still constituted a public nuisance and they had had enough. Following up on a promise to do so, president Wayne Willock said he had personally delivered a letter to the office of the Minister of Health Donville Inniss on the matter after the minister had come out in favour of something being done against perpetrators of the act of burning garbage. Willock had said after the minister's statements that the group was happy to have finally found a sympathetic ear to the plight of many, especially those with respiratory challenges. "We strongly believe that the attention which we have been able to draw to this issue may have prompted this focus. We thank him [Inniss] for his timely recognition of this very inconsiderate practice or tr...

Barbados has recorded another road fatality. Dead is 24 year-old Tracy Watson of Fairfield Road, Black Rock. She died just before one Monday morning, along the Cummings section of the ABC highway after a smash up with another vehicle. Watson who received multiply injuries died on the spot. She was in a car driven by, Jason Beckles of Welchman Hall St. Thomas. The vehicle collided with a motor van driven by Tyrone Watts of St. Peter. Watts complained of pains to the back of his head and he also had three other passengers on board, all of whom complained of injuries about their body and where taken to the QEH by ambulance. The accident followed less than twelve hours after another fatal accident in which 65 year-old Eustace Padmore of Lemon Arbour St. John lost his life. He was struck by a truck driven by Renaldo Johnson of Hopewell St. Thomas. That accident occurred at the junction of Green Hill and Lodge Hill St. Michael around 5:30 Sunday evening. The two deaths have brought t...

Quick action by three men averted what could have been a major disaster in Fitts Village, St James, just after 9 p.m. on Tuesday. Neal Hope, 23, Christopher Caines, 27, and Kegan Cumberbatch, 21, who live in the district said they were alerted by the smell of smoke. “We smelt smoke and when we saw it was a house in the district, we rushed through the back gate, got a hose that was on the pipe and tried to out it,” said Hope, spokesman for the three. “We really had to do something, and that included wetting a nearby tree because the fire was starting to spread,” he added. Three water tenders and seven fire officers responded to the fire which destroyed the house and damaged another. A fire official said the resident of the destroyed house, Jeffrey Brewster, was not at home at the time of the fire. (JG) Source: http://www.nationnews.com/

Four and a half days of intensive training, conducted by the Barbados Coast Guard has better equipped 10 firefighters of the Barbados Fire Service. In an effort to ensure the two services can work as a more cohesive team, the firefighters were trained in various aspects of emergency response, including in-water rescue, man overboard drills as well as training on the HMBS Leonard C. Banfield. At the closing ceremony last Friday, Station Officer Mervin Mayers, stationed at BFS' Probyn Street headquarters, noted the organisation had acquired a new boat, and their training would be called on in the case of emergency situations where its use would be needed. He also said the training would be another way to improve the customer service offered to the Barbadian public. Those who graduated were: Acting Sub Officer Lever Jordan, Acting Leading Fire officer Andrew Boyce, and fire officers Junia Griffith, Pernel MCclean, Randy King, Daveson Deane, Lonsdale Blake, Kelan McCalla, N...

23 FIRE CADETS READY TO ANSWER CALL After five long weeks of hard, energy-sapping training, 23 Junior Fire Cadets showed off their skills to parents and other fire officials at a recent closing ceremony. Patricia Archer, who spoke on behalf of parents, said that she would never have known about the programme if she was not involved in a training programme organised by the Fire Service. Station Officer Mervin Mayers stated that the Fire Cadet programme should not be seen as another summer camp, but as a method of teaching discipline and deportment to the cadets. After a march pass and thorough inspection, the cadets showed off the various fire displays that they had learnt in their time at the programme, including drill displays, hose and hydrant drills, one man hose and hydrant drill, ladder drill, fire blanket and skirt and dance. Nalita Gajadhar from Bureau of Gender Affairs gave the featured address and told the students their ancestors had to fight for where they we...

A carpenter collapsed and died on the roof of a house he was repairing at Long Gap, Spooners Hill, St Michael, yesterday afternoon. Dead is Randell Morris, 55, of Villa Road, Brittons Hill, St Michael. A co-worker told the DAILY NATION he was talking to Morris just prior to his fatal collapse around 5:55 p.m. “I was on the ground talking to him when he just lay down,” he said. Fire Service officials responded to the emergency call. Station Officer Mervin Mayers said the officers checked for vitals, adding that someone had also attempted CPR (cardiopulmonary resuscitation). (CA) Source: www.nationnews.com

The Bajan Fire Fighters' Network and the Barbados Fire Service are proud to partner with "Barbados We Care: The Helping Hands" and the City of Bridgetown Credit Union for the the Barbados Primary Schools Initiative. The schools benefiting this year are St. Ambrose, St. Christopher, St. Giles, St. Andrew's Primary, St. Martin's Mangrove, Hillaby Turners Hall, and St. Margaret’s. Read entire article: Barbados Advocate

The large low pressure system 650 miles east of the northern Windward Islands (12.9N 51.2W) is becoming better organised. On its present track, the leading edge of the cloud mass will begin to affect Barbados by this afternoon, with some pockets of moderate to heavy showers, isolated thunderstorms and occasional gusty winds spreading across the island. Indications are that some of this activity will persist into Monday. Residents should remain on the alert, and continue to monitor any further updates.

GEORGETOWN -- A Caribbean Airlines plane with 140 passengers aboard crashed while landing in Guyana early today and broke in two, causing several injuries but no deaths, said President Bharrat Jagdeo. The plane apparently overshot the 400-foot (123-metre) runway at Cheddi Jagan International Airport in rainy weather. It barely missed a 200-foot (61-meter) ravine that could have resulted in dozens of fatalities, he said. "We are very, very grateful that more people were not injured," he said as authorities closed the airport, leaving hundreds of passengers stranded and delaying dozens of flights. Authorities struggled to remove passengers without adequate field lights and other emergency equipment. The extent of the injuries was not immediately clear. The plane had left New York and made a stop in Trinidad before landing in Guyana. No further details were immediately available. The crash of the BW 523 is the worst in recent history in Guyana, and only one of the few serious in...

Developing responsible citizens aim of fire cadet programme Fire Officer Fernando McAllister has recommended that the Junior Fire Cadet Programme held at the Arch Hall Fire Station, Arch Hall, St. Thomas not be†interpreted as a casual experience. In an overview of the programme, McAllister said the aim was to provide good working habits and to build positive attitudes among all members enrolled rather than an experience of leisure. "It is hoped that each cadet will leave this programme with a better sense of responsibility, and that he or she will be more accountable for his or her actions within the family unit and in the community," McAllister said. He added that he hoped each participant would have a better idea of where they would fit into society with their future goals by exposing the cadets to the skills of firefighters and the rules fire service employees followed to accomplish success. "The five-week programme is designed to instill in each parti...

An 18-month-old baby suffered minor head injuries yesterday when the Transport Board bus she was travelling in was involved in an accident with an Ocean Fisheries truck along St Silas Road, St James, around 9:50 a.m. Police Constable Reginald Blackman, the investigating officer, confirmed that baby Jania Paul was travelling with her mother, Janelle Paul, when the incident occurred. The baby was taken to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital by ambulance. Driver of the Ocean Fisheries truck, 27-year-old Shelton Small of Turners Hall, St Andrew, had to be freed from his vehicle by officers of the Barbados Fire Service using the Jaws of Life, after he was pinned in. He received “slight injuries to the right leg, forehead and left leg”, said Blackman, while the bus driver, 35-year-old Junior Gilkes from Taylor’s Land, Fairfield, Black Rock, St Michael, complained of shoulder injuries. (CT) Source: www.nationnews.com

For the next five weeks, 25 students will be taking part in the Barbados Fire Service’s Junior Fire Cadet Programme at the Arch Hall Fire Station in St. Thomas. The programme, sponsored by Roberts Manufacturing Limited and SOL Barbados Limited, is designed to instil in each participant a sense of character, confidence, self-esteem and self-discipline. Co-ordinator Fernando McAllister acknowledged that the programme will be very thorough, and consists of practical and theoretical exercises. “The fire cadets will participate in varying aspects of training, such as proper techniques for handling and working with nozzles, fire hoses, and many of the various fittings; and CPR. They will be taught about the organisational structure of the Fire Service, what it takes to become a fire-fighter and the importance of a sound education,” he highlighted. “Presentations will also be delivered from various entities such as The Sanitation Department, Environmental Protection Departments, and National ...

The Arch Hall Fire Station was a hive of activity when 24 campers of the Quality Care Camp visited the St Thomas facility yesterday. The children had a totally enlightening experience as they got to tour the station and check out the various pieces of equipment used by firefighters. Fire Officer Carlos Husbands, who conducted the tour, showed the children how to use the Jaws Of Life as well as the fire hose and even gave them an opportunity to sit in a fire truck. Camp director Sylvia Arthur-Holder said the tour was the first of several planned for the students during the six-week camp. She explained that in addition to tours and the usual summer activities, the camp, which operates from the St John the Baptist Church, would expose the campers to Bible study and devotions. “The community is slipping in morals, so we are trying to see if we can do something to assist these youngsters to go on the right path,” Arthur-Holder said. (LK) Source: www.nationnews.com

As summer begins to sizzle, some New Yorkers and other culture connoisseurs travelling to Barbados, will not only boast of enjoying the myriad experiences offered during the island’s Crop-Over Festival. A Crop-Over Dutch party, Ladies’ Bikini Cricket, and a children’s event with the Barbados Fire Service will be part of the growing trend to do good, while having fun as the Barbados We Care - The Helping Hands organisation heads to Bim. The group, started on Facebook in October 2010 by Sue Bowen and Barclay Harris, with the specific aim of lending assistance to Barbadians and other Caribbean children and families in times of disaster and other areas of need, has joined with NYAL Productions of New York, to lead “philanthropists” to the island in late July. For the inaugural trip, the group has identified seven primary schools (The Primary Schools Initiative) – St. Giles, St. Martin’s/Mangrove, St. Margaret’s, St. Christopher’s, St. Ambrose, St. Andrew’s and Hillaby/Turner’s Hall – in ad...

Bath in St John was turned into a mass casualty scene last night after a coach carrying picnickers overturned, injuring more than two dozen people. Four were rushed to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital (QEH), but none of the injuries was believed to be life-threatening. Well after 10 p.m. ambulances were still speeding to the hilly eastern parish, overtaking many a driver hurrying along to see what had happened. Some of the curious said they were trying to check on whether relatives were among the injured. Thirty people were travelling in the bus, owned and operated by Johnson Tours. On an island tour, the bus, making Bath its last stop, flipped sending passengers, most of whom were in their 20s and 30s, into a spin. Source: www.nationnews.com

At least six people were injured in a collision between two mini-buses in Shop Hill, St. Thomas. According to police reports, the accident occurred at 8:15 Friday morning as both vehicles were approaching the area of the Lester Vaughn School. Most of the injuries were minor but Carol-Ann Whittington of Airy Cot, St. Thomas was taken to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital for treatment. Source: www.cbc.bb

Students of the Luther Thorne Memorial Primary School had a fun-filled afternoon yesterday as they participated in the Student Awareness of Fire Education (SAFE) programme. Members of the Barbados Fire Service (Probyn Street) visited the school and shared valuable information regarding fire safety. (Photo compliments: C Bishop)

The Barbados Fire Service Association and the Administration of the Fire Service are collaborating to address the issue of re-hydration of firefighters at major incidents. This announcement was made during a brief ceremony at Fire Service Headquarters yesterday, as the BFSA presented a cooler to Chief Fire Officer Wilfred Marshall.

Firemen averted what could have been a major catastrophe in the City this afternoon when the old ice factory in Mason Hall Street went up in flames. The alarm was raised around 1:43 p.m. that the building which is located in a very densely populated area, was on fire. Although there was nothing significant inside the old factory and the adjoining building, employees from a nearby cleaning company kept a close eye on the blaze, which belched black smoke that could be seen as far away as Cave Hill, St. Michael. It was that billowing smoke that prompted MP for the City of Bridgetown, Patrick Todd to visit to the scene. He told the media that he saw the thick smoke from the offices of the Ministry of Housing and Lands at Country Road and was concerned. "The fire did not spread to neighbouring households. We are very happy that the emergency services were able to respond so quickly to avert a major catastrophe because as you would know this area is very densely populated with the avenu...

Fire has broken out at the old Ice Factory and Smithfield Foods Limited building at Mason Hall Street in the city. That fire is currently being fought by three fire tenders from the Barbados Fire Service. The fire which started just before 1 o’clock this afternoon consumed the partially abandoned building. Scores of onlookers gathered on the scene and some had to assist with the removal of several cars from the environs of the burning building. One young man from the area said a lot of men from the New Orleans and surrounding districts had to alert the owners of several cars which are usually parked in the area and assist with the removal. Concern was also raised about the potential threat of the fire spreading and affecting the portion of the building which is used as chemical storage for Bajan Cleaning Services. Source: www.nationnews.com

A brother's frantic efforts to find his 75-year-old sister last night ended in tragedy. Henderson Mottley said last night that he visited his sister, Velma Smith, on Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays, at her No. 24 Durants, Christ Church home. "I came up my usual time about 6:30 and I would sit down and me and she would sit down and I would finish watch Day of Our Lives wid she. When I first came up I saw the house in darkness, and I was wondering what happened and I said to myself this ain't like her," he recounted. He said he knocked and called around saying "Sis, sis, sis all the time", but did not hear anything. He then asked one of his sister's close friends if she told her she was going out but she said no. "I then called [her] cellular phone, I called the house number. I stand up outside on the patio, I called the number and I heard it ring, ring, ring, then it ring off. I said something got to be wrong," he noted. Mottley said he then che...

Sanitation officials and fire officers monitored a smouldering landfill at Mangrove, St Thomas today after thousands of tyres went up in smoke, creating headaches for residents downwind. A joint effort by officials from the public and private sector sought to bring the situation under control after the landfill erupted in flames on Saturday night sending thick toxic smoke billowing towards residential areas down wind, including the plush Sandy Lane estate. However, it was residents of the nearby Arch Hall district who complained about the smoke, which they said not only inconvenienced them as they prepared their Sunday lunch, but also impacted negatively on people with a variety of health ailments, particularly asthma. Minister of the Environment Denis Kellman as well as health officials visited the scene earlier today and later this afternoon the Department of Emergency Management will be giving an update on the situation. (ES) Source: www.nationnews.com

Eleven fire officers, led by Chief Fire Officer Wilfred Marshall, were this morning deeply involved in a battle to bring a massive blaze at the Mangrove Pond Landfill, under control. After receiving the call at 7:13 p.m., 11 fire officers in three water tenders and the water tanker from the Arch Hall, St. Thomas station and Probyn Street, City headquarters rushed to the scene to quell the inferno, which involved an estimated two million tyres. Marshall told the media sometime after midnight that “a lot of tyres” were burning over a wide area but he was optimistic that they would have the blaze under control during the day. “What we are actually doing at this time is trucking in mould (dirt) and we’re trying to smother the fire. We’re dumping the mould on top of the tyres and bringing it under control,” he said. Source: m.barbadostoday.bb

Residents living in the environs of the Mangrove landfill, St Thomas are keeping their eyes on a huge fire that broke out at the landfill tonight. Personnel from the Arch Hall Fire Station responded to the blaze around 7:15. Officials of the Department of the Emergency Management are on the scene and according to reports have closed off the access road to the landfill. Source: www.nationnews.com

Above photo: Some members of the Barbados Fire Service team at the conclusion of yesterday's Law Enforcement Torch Run . We extend our sincere thanks to all those persons who generously supported the Law Enforcement Torch Run yesterday. The funds raised will go a long way towards assisting our Special Olympians as they prepare to travel to Athens, Greece for the Special Olympics World Summer Games 2011. See website: http://www.athens2011.org/en/

Six people were injured when a minibus and a lorry collided at Porey Spring, St Thomas, yesterday afternoon. Police reported that Ian Lowe, the driver of the minibus, which plies the Hillaby route, suffered injury to a foot while five passengers sustained minor injuries. They were all taken to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital by ambulance. Ian Absalom, the driver of the lorry, was unhurt. Police from the District “D” Station are investigating. Here, police officers taking measurements at the scene. (MB) Source: www.nationnews.com

A fire that occurred in the early hours last Sunday morning has left a family of three in the north homeless. Leman King, his wife Rhonda and their daughter Sandra Scantlebury, all of Mile-and-a-Quarter, St Peter, were all at home when the blaze started. King received burns to the hands and face while Scantlebury also received burns to the face. The injured were taken to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital by ambulance for medical attention and were later discharged. Two fire tenders responded to the fire which presented a challenge because of the narrow roads. (RL) Source: www.nationnews.com

A 35-year-old American visitor was seriously injured after the scooter he was riding and a Transport Board bus collided at Rockley, Christ Church, yesterday afternoon. Police officers of the Traffic Department said Kent Bailey, who hails from California, had life-threatening injuries. He was riding a hired motorbike that was involved with a cross-country bus that left Silver Sands bound for Wanstead. The bus was driven by Paul Maitland of Martinique Road, My Lord’s Hill, St Michael. The police are probing the incident, which took place about 4:30 p.m. (MK) Source: www.nationnews.com

A family of four are homeless after a fire completely destroyed their wall residence in Welches, Christ Church, in the wee hours of this morning. Rodney Hall and his wife Carol are counting their losses after a fire swept through their house, located near Super Centre complex, just after 3 a.m. The couple lived in the three-bedroom dwelling with their two sons. Fire officers did not enter the blazing house because of the health danger posed by the asbestos roof. No one was injured, but little was saved from the building. Three Barbados Fire Service tenders from the headquarters at Probyn Street and Worthing under the command of Station Officer Darcy Smith responded to the fire. Both fire officials and the police are conducting investigations. Above, the rear view of the house which was destroyed by fire today. According to police, the residents were able to escape through the front of the building. (MK) Source: http://www.nationnews.com/

Mother's Day celebrations ended on a sad note, with three men tragically losing their lives in two separate road accidents. Just before midnight Sunday, two friends who lived opposite each other at Rosemont, Deacons, St Michael, died on the spot when the motorcycle they were riding slammed into a tree at Deacons Farm Road, St Michael. Dead are Samuel Anderson Williams, 21, and pillion rider Jamal Jeffrey Johnson, 20. Almost seven hours later, 44-year-old Anthony Lavere Walcott, of Lemon Arbor Village, St John, died on the spot in a four-vehicle accident along the ABC Highway, just opposite the playing field of Deighton Griffith Secondary School. Walcott was the passenger in a truck driven by work colleague Everton Dottin. The motorcycle tragedy hit the close-knit Rosemont community hard as some family members and close friends could be heard wailing as news of the two young men’s death spread. Raising her hands to the heavens, Williams’ mother Deborah Williams spoke of hearing her...

A road fatality this morning on the ABC Highway has claimed the life of Anthony Walcott, 45, of Lemon Arbor , St John. Police public relations officer Inspector David Welch confirmed that Walcott was a passenger in one of the trucks involved in the accident, which took place between the Edwy Talma roundabout at Kendal Hill and the junction at the Deighton Griffith School in Christ Church. The accident, he said, involved two trucks and two cars. Welch said Walcott died on the spot. He also reported that a juvenile was involved in the accident but there was no life threatening injury. In a separate accident last night in Deacons Road, St Michael, two young men lost their lives. Samuel "Andy" Williams, 31, and Jamaal Johnson, 20, both of Rosemont, Deacons Road, St Michael died in the accident which occurred around 11:30 p.m. Source: www.nationnews.com

A mother is the truest friend we have, when trials, heavy and sudden, fall upon us; when adversity takes the place of prosperity; when friends who rejoice with us in our sunshine, desert us when troubles thicken around us, still will she cling to us, and endeavor by her kind precepts and counsels to dissipate the clouds of darkness, and cause peace to return to our hearts. ~ Washington Irving

The Law Enforcement Torch Run Campaign to benefit the Special Olympics began in 1981 in Wichita Kansas and is the largest grass-roots fundraising movement for the Special Olympics. The Law Enforcement Torch Run, or LETR as it is commonly abbreviated, is run by Police Officers, Sheriff's Deputies, support staff, police volunteers and other law enforcement professionals from around the world. Currently, close to 90,000 police professionals in over 35 countries participate in this worldwide effort to raise money and awareness for Special Olympics. While carrying the flame, officers and athletes are referred to as "Guardians of the Flame". In the broader sense, the LETR is used to define all of the special events, and fundraising activities that law enforcement conducts to contribute to this campaign. For more information contact: Superintendent Robinson Tel: (246) 430-7660 Human Resource Department Royal Barbados Police Force

In recognition of the sacrifices made in countries all over the globe, International Fire Fighters’ Day – IFFD – was inaugurated on 4th May 1999. Since then it has been held annually, to mark a time when Firefighters of the present and past are remembered, recognised and thanked for their dedication in saving lives and protecting property. "The role of a firefighter in today's society - be it urban, rural, natural environment, volunteer, career, industrial, defence force, aviation, motor sport, or other is one of dedication, commitment and sacrifice - no matter what country we reside and work in. In the fire service we fight together against one common enemy - fire - no matter what country we come from, what uniform we wear or what language we speak." Take a moment to stop and thank a firefighter, their family or their colleagues in the fire service today. If you're a firefighter take time to thank a fellow firefighter, one or more of your mentors (perhaps they have r...

A motor vehicle accident occurred this morning at Holders Hill, St. James involving two Transport Board buses. No information is available at this time regarding possible injuries. However, as persistent light to moderate showers continue across the island, we encourage motorist to be vigilant and exercise caution on our highways. Residents in flood-prone areas should also monitor current conditions... be safe folks.

Another look at the new 3000 gallon water tanker (T1) acquired by the Barbados Fire Service in February from Angloco Limited, UK. ( e-Report photo by T Griffith )