WESTERN BUREAU: The death of Raymond Facey, who was killed while working on the North Coast Highway in Hanover on Wednesday, has left his co-workers reeling from shock.

The atmosphere at the site a day later was sombre as workers openly grieved for their fallen collegue.

Jeptha Salmon, who said he worked closely alongside Facey, has yet to come to terms with his colleague’s death.

“I don’t really know what happened… the last time I saw him alive he was beckoning to me, and by the time I stoop to take up the tools, I heard somebody say ‘Oh my God he’s dead!’,” Salmon said.

“And when I look I saw this little black thing beside the wheel of the grader, but I said he must a go get up back and brush off himself … I continued to walk toward the grader, but then I saw the blood and I just couldn’t go any further. I’m very sad. He and I worked very close together,” he added.

Edgar Russell, who worked with Facey for eight years in the National Works Agency (NWA), also expressed his grief at Facey’s passing.

“Everybody nervous…. Everybody weak out (and) stressed out,” Russell said. “Raymond was a man of wisdom. He was a man with good mentality, loyal to his wife and children and him dedicate himself to his work.”

According to police reports, shortly after 3:00 pm, Facey, who worked as an assistant grader operator on the highway, was hit by a yellow grader motor tractor driven by his co-worker, Bentley Merchant, of a Port Antonio address.

Facey was allegedly kneeling behind the grader at the time he was hit. He fell from the impact and his head was run over.

He was later taken to the Noel Holmes Hospital in the parish but it was too late. He was pronounced dead on arrival.

“I feel very sad about it. Raymond was my friend. He was always cheerful, always trying to do his work. If all men in Jamaica were like Raymond, we would have a peaceful Jamaica. I never heard that young man curse a bad word yet,” said a distraught Simone Streete, who worked with Facey for the past year.

Site supervisor, Roy Campbell, expressed similar sentiments.

“It’s a terrible loss. It affect the project. His post was assistant grader operator but he assisted generally. He was really interested in the work. He will be forever missed,” Campbell said.

Facey is survived by five children.