MAY PEN, Clarendon – A policeman, who lost control of his motorbike as he struggled to remove the string of a kite that had become entangled around his neck, died yesterday afternoon as a result of injuries sustained during the crash.

He has been identified as Fitzroy Allison. He was assigned to the May Pen Traffic Department in Clarendon.

According to the head of the parish’s traffic division, Inspector Cornel Messam, the accident occurred along the Bustamante Highway at about 3:00 pm.

Constable Allison and another of his colleagues had escorted a funeral procession to Sandy Bay District in the parish and were on their way back to May Pen when the freak accident occurred.

Inspector Messam told the Sunday Observer that Constable Allison became entangled in the kite’s string near an overhead bridge along the highway.

The string, which was tied to a tree and stretched across the roadway, caught the constable in the region of his neck.

As he tried to free himself, the cop lost control of his bike and was thrown, head first, into a ditch.

He sustained serious head injuries and was rushed to the May Pen Hospital by his colleague. But it was too late; he was pronounced dead on arrival.

Yesterday, Inspector Messam described Constable Allison as someone who was always willing to go the extra mile.

Still reeling from his colleague’s death, the inspector also appealed to persons who fly kites near the highway to immediately cease the activity.