McCOOK’S PEN, St Catherine — One woman was killed and nine other persons injured during a four-vehicle collision along a section of the McCook’s Pen main road in St Catherine early yesterday morning.

Dead is 44 year-old teacher, Dawn Williamson of Cumberland District in the parish, who, ironically, was on her way to the doctor to change a cast that had been placed on her broken arm following a motor vehicle accident last week.

Yesterday, she suffered massive head injuries and had to be literally cut from the vehicle which her husband was driving at the time of the crash.

Head of the Old Harbour police traffic department, sergeant Gregory Silvera, told the Observer that the accident occurred at about 7:15 yesterday morning. He said a white Toyota Hiace mini-bus, which was being driven towards Spanish Town by 36 year-old Bertram Gilbert, allegedly overtook a line of traffic and slammed into the right side of a red Toyota corolla motorcar, headed towards Old Harbour.

The traffic cop said the mini-bus then collided with the Williamson’s car — a grey Nissan Bluebird which was being driven by Nipoline Williamson — then slammed into a grey Mitsubishi panel van, driven by Berris Pitter, before coming to a complete stop.

Those injured and admitted to the Spanish Town Hospital are 12 year-old Sanjay Pitter, his 14 year-old sister Saralee Pitter and their father, Berris Pitter, 43.

The dead woman’s 49 year-old husband Nipoline, their 11 year old-son Javel and Nipoline’s sister, 59 year-old Juliete have also been admitted to hospital. Bertram Gabriel, 36; 31 year-old Angella Martell; and Cleveland Zayvia, 18 have also been hospitalised.

Stanley McCarty, the driver of the red Toyota corolla motorcar, managed to escape injury.

“I was heading west along the McCook’s Pen to Highhouse Main Road in the parish when I observed the white Toyota Hiace mini-bus coming up from out of the line of traffic towards me,” he told the Observer. “So I pull over to the left side of the road to avoid being hit. However, he still manage to hit my side; and if I did not move out of the way I would have collided with him.”

According to police statistics, up to August 18 last year, 222 persons across the island had died in 242 accidents in which there were fatalities. The corresponding figures for this year are 190 accidents and 213 deaths.

To date, there have been 41 accidents in which there were fatalities in St Catherine, with 44 deaths. For the same period last year, there were 46 accidents in which there were fatalities and 48 deaths for the parish.

For all of last year, there were 369 accidents in which there were fatalities across the island and a total of 408 deaths.