Car Collides Into Fire Truck, Crushing Firefighter in St. Ann

A motor vehicle collision led to the death of a 25-year-old firefighter in Ocho Rios, St Ann, earlier today. The car crashed into the back of a fire truck along the Ocho Rios main road sometime around 2:40 p.m., killing Larenzo Douse, a firefighter from the Ocho Rios Fire Station.

The Minister of Local Government, Desmond McKenzie, who is grieving the deceased, gave an account of what transpired.

According to his explanation, the motorist overtook traffic in the vicinity of Reynolds Pier and slammed into the rear of a parked fire truck, crashing into Douse. The fireman was at the side of the road, “putting a pump into the fire truck” after completing an operation. McKenzie said that “the firemen had just finished their shift and were replacing the equipment in the back of the truck.”

At the time of the incident, Douse was alone. After the incident, he was taken to the hospital, where he was pronounced dead. Douse, who celebrated his twenty-fifth birthday on November 13, became a firefighter when he was nineteen and served in the Jamaica Fire Brigade for six years. 

“The grief at his terrible demise is being felt beyond the Ocho Rios Fire Station, where he was stationed, and goes all the way into the St. Catherine Division, where young Larenzo’s father is a serving assistant superintendent,” McKenzie stated. While stating that “personal irresponsibility” caused Douse to die, he appealed to all drivers to be responsible on the road.

He continued to express his sorrow and said that numerous staff members, including the fire brigade commissioner, are personally providing their assistance.