WESTERN BUREAU — Tashley Kelly, 26, an engineer employed to the Ritz Carlton Rose Hall Hotel in Montego Bay, on Monday became the first victim of a traffic accident in St James this year.

Kelly, of Discovery Bay in St Ann, was killed after his car collided with a bus along the Coral Gardens main road at about 4:50 am Monday.

The police reported that Kelly, who was driving a black hatch back Honda Civic motor car, registered 1322 DM, reportedly lost control of the car while negotiating the corner in the vicinity of the Esso gas station at Ironshore. He collided with a white Toyota Hiace minibus, registered 5527 PP.

Kelly received multiple injuries to the body and was taken to the Cornwall Regional Hospital where he was pronounced dead.

The driver of the minibus, Patrick Howard, 31, of Pitfour in St James, was not hurt in the accident.

Public and community relations director at the Ritz Carlton Rose Hall Hotel, Verona Carter, on Monday extended her sympathies to Kelly’s family. But insisting that it was “private matter”, she refused to comment on how long he had been in the hotel’s employ, the type of worker he was or whether the hotel would aid in his funeral arrangements.

“It’s a private matter so I can’t comment on it. All I can say is that our hearts and prayers go out to his family. It is obviously a very sad time for his family and it is also a private matter, therefore, I cannot comment on the situation. However, we are doing everything we can to support his family,” Carter told the Observer.

Meanwhile, Constabulary Communication Network (CCN) officer for St James, Constable Lancelot Tyrell, has urged Jamaicans to take all the necessary precautions to ensure their safety on the island’s roads.

“People need to exercise a level of awareness of road conditions and take more care on the road,” Tyrell said.

“We are also appealing to motorists to obey the speed limits on the road as we would like to minimise the road fatalities this year,” he added.