ST CATHERINE, Jamaica — An early-morning commute turned fatal on Wednesday when a Nissan Frontier pick-up veered off the roadway and disappeared beneath the waters of the Rio Cobre in the Bog Walk Gorge.
The sole occupant, 58-year-old mechanical engineer Garfield Batts of Rose Drive, Green Acres, Spanish Town, never emerged from the submerged vehicle alive.
Preliminary information from the Jamaica Constabulary Force’s Corporate Communications Unit indicates that Mr Batts was travelling east through the gorge at approximately 6:30 a.m. when control of the truck was lost on the winding stretch. The vehicle breached the riverbank and plunged into the fast-moving current.
Emergency responders from both the JCF and the Jamaica Fire Brigade arrived swiftly, initiating a coordinated river search. Divers located the pick-up, extricated Mr Batts, and rushed him to hospital, where doctors pronounced him dead.
Investigators are examining the crash scene to determine the factors—mechanical, environmental, or human—that contributed to the mishap. Traffic through the gorge experienced intermittent delays while recovery operations were underway.
The incident renews calls for heightened caution in the Bog Walk Gorge, a corridor known equally for its scenic beauty and its perilous bends.
