Jungle George refuses to die - Man still living 11 years after staging own funeral

Eleven years after staging his 'nine night' and taking part in his own funeral, George McPherson, more fondly known as 'Jungle George', still has no plans to die.

"No man can't make nuh plans 'bout death. No man nuh like hear 'bout death," McPherson said. "No one knows when it a come. A when it come, it come."

But even though you can't make plans about when one will die, apparently planning for what comes after death is a smart move for McPherson and his family.

"When you dead, you nuh know what type of funeral you will get," McPherson said. "What you get, you have to tek. But mi never plan to tek weh mi get, so mi a mek what me want."

McPherson said that he got the idea from his mother, who planned her entire funeral.

"She go to the funeral home and pay for everything, and when she died we (he and his siblings) never have to do nothing," McPherson said. " Is only the 'nine night' we did have to do."

Going a step further than his mother, Jungle George planned and hosted his 'nine night' and funeral.

"I had a friend who worked at the funeral home and him lend mi the hearse for free," McPherson recalled. "We have the coffin and everything."

The 72-year-old native of Norris, St Thomas, has since built his tomb. "When mi dead, they just going to cremate me and scatter the ashes at the tomb," McPherson said.

The memorial of McPherson's planned funeral is held every year on July 30.

"The people dem always look forward to it," McPherson said.