WESTERN BUREAU – One man was killed and seven others, including six American visitors, were injured after a two-vehicle collision along the Rose Hall main road in St James yesterday morning.

Dead is 24 year-old peanut porridge vendor Jermaine “Buju” Sutherland from the Peace View section of Albion in St James.

Meanwhile injured, and forced to miss their flight back home are:

. 57 year-old Priscilla Somerville and her 28 year-old sister Tolando Somerville – both from Indiana;

. 50 year-old Mitch Lasat and his 47 year-old wife Mia from Alexandra;

. 35 year-old Ryan Tracy and 28 year-old Nicole Dennis, both of Arizona.

It was unclear, yesterday, how long the visitors had been in the island. They had been guests at Hedonism III in Runaway Bay, St Ann.

Winston Walters, a 50 year-old bus driver from Three Hills, Charlston Town in St Mary was also injured.

The American tourists were travelling from Ocho Rios in an Exclusive Holiday tour bus, driven by Walters, when the accident occurred.

They were headed for the Sangster International Airport while Sutherland was headed for Falmouth where he sells peanut porridge. His red Nissan Sunny motor vehicle collided with the tour bus.

Police reports are that at about 5:30 am Sutherland swerved to avoid hitting a disabled truck and crashed into the Toyota Hiace coaster bus.

Sutherland and seven persons in the bus sustained injuries. Lasat, Tracy, Dennis and Walters were taken to the MoBay Hope Hospital and the others taken to the Cornwall Regional Hospital where Sutherland was pronounced dead.

According to Dr Karen Earle of the MoBay Hope Hospital, Tracy, who suffered head injuries and was unconscious up to late yesterday afternoon, was considered to be in serious condition while the other three were considered stable.

Sutherland’s mother, Sharon Brown of John’s Hall in St James, was overcome with grief when she learned of the death of her son. She remembers him as a quiet young man.

“He was a quiet person… does not talk much,” she said in a barely audible voice.

She said that Sutherland used to work in the accounts departments of several hotels in Montego Bay. He had made a career change and briefly tried his hand at being a taxi operator but gave that up “because of too much police harassment”, she said. He later opted to join his cousins in selling peanut porridge at two venues – one in Falmouth and the other in Montego Bay.