ROSE HALL, St James — Montego Bay’s elegant corridor was on Sunday night the scene of yet another fatal crash that is being partially blamed on defective street lights.

Rupert Hutchinson, a security guard from Bounty Hall in the neighbouring parish of Trelawny, died after sustaining injuries in the traffic mishap that took place along the Rose Hall main road. Five others were injured.

Hutchinson was a passenger in a Nissan AD Wagon motor car that was heading towards Falmouth, Trelawny, when the incident occurred in the vicinity of the Barrett Town traffic lights in St James, about 7:15 pm.

According to reports from first responders on the scene, a Mazda Premacy motor car, which was travelling in the opposite direction to the Nissan, went over the median separating lanes of traffic and slammed into the vehicle in which Hutchinson was travelling. The security guard was on his way home from work, according to those who were at the scene of the crash. The driver of the Mazda was on his way from Clarendon, heading to the airport in Montego Bay.

As curious travellers tried to get a look at the crash, the left lane going towards Lilliput was completely blocked at one point.

A social media post sought to make a link between the crash and a string of lights that were out at the time.

The issue of defective street lights and the role they play in traffic mishaps that sometimes claim lives, is one that has, in the past, been raised by councillor for the Rose Hall Division, Anthony Murray who has called on both the State Jamaica Public Service Company Ltd (JPS) and National Works Agency (NWA) to act.

When contacted on Monday, the JPS stressed that the street lights were the responsibility of the NWA.

“There is some discussion between the Government and JPS with regards to how the light is to be handled going forward, but at the moment they do belong to the NWA and they are responsible for the maintenance thereof,” said the JPS Director of Corporate Communications Winsome Callum.

According to community relations officer at the NWA’s western office, Janel Ricketts, street lights sometimes stop working due to the force with which vehicles hit them. She said the lights operate in a circuit and when there is an issue, about 15 of them become inoperative at the same time.

However, Ricketts assured that issues related to lighting on the elegant corridor are expected to be addressed soon. She noted that a memorandum of understanding is being worked out between the relevant government agencies and the JPS to have the matter resolved.