A SAD DAY | Worthy Park Estate Worker Dies Days After Being Injured
April 30, 2022Four days after being injured on the job at Worthy Park Sugar Estate in Lluidas Vale, St Catherine, Clinton Reid has died.
He passed away last evening at Kingston Public Hospital where he was in coma, according to his family, which had made a public appeal for blood in an attempt to save his life.
“It is a big loss, but God knows why,” said Cynthia Reid, sister of the deceased.
Her late brother, a father of two, is from Point Hill district in St Catherine.
Reports are that he was on duty at the garage at Worthy Park Sugar Estate when a tyre he was pumping air into exploded. The tyre hit him, resulting in several injuries.
Regarding the incident, Chief Executive Officer at the company, Gordon Clarke, told The Beacon: “It is very unfortunate. But we are still waiting to get more details and so I have no other comment.”
Clarke also declined to comment on concerns raised in relation to safety gear at the estate.
At the time Reid was injured, he reportedly was not wearing any.
The Bustamante Industrial Trade Union (BITU), which represents some of the workers, is in negotiations with the company at the Ministry of Labour in a bid to address the issue.
BITU Chief Delegate, Arlene Thomas, who also works at Worthy Park Sugar Estate, said there is a long-standing issue of the company not adequately providing workers with safety gear.
Thomas expressed hope that the tragedy, albeit heart-breaking, will be a wake-up call to all stakeholders.
“I hope the company will put more interest in doing the right thing of getting the protective gear for workers and making sure that this type of incident does not happen again. It is a sad, sad, sad day,” Thomas said emphatically. “The workers have done their part of working hard to let the company achieve all its goals… The company should let the workers feel that they are appreciated; there is a lot of workers who really don’t feel appreciated by the company.”
Thomas also spoke highly of Reid. “He was a nice worker who was always jovial, but he was not a person who talked a lot,” she said.
Another employee of the estate, Georgia ‘Heather’ Roberts, recalled speaking with Reid a day before tragedy struck.
She stated that, although Reid was economical with words, he was honest, hard-working and jovial.
“I have never heard anything bad about Clinton or him having any war with anyone. He is always a kind and jovial person. He was small in body but has a big heart. He always gets things done and was just a sweetheart,” Roberts added.
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