Bus falls off jack and kills driver

The grief being experienced by the family members of Wellesly 'Bobby' Waugh, following his death in a freak accident last Thursday, was like an extra layer of skin.

Waugh, 43, was crushed to death last Thursday while doing repairs on his bus in Maroon Town, St James. The vehicle fell on top of him despite having been jacked up beforehand. When THE STAR visited Waugh's family yesterday, the bus was still sitting in the front yard, only a few feet away from where the tragic mishap happened.

Kerry-Ann Cunningham, Waugh's sister, was in tears as she recounted how she had ridden in her brother's bus just two days before the tragedy unfolded.

"He was a good person. Last week Bobby carried me in the bus...oh God...last week Tuesday he carried me in the bus, and he even drove me past which part I was to go," said Cunningham, pausing briefly to try and compose herself as the tears threatened to overwhelm her.

According to reports, Waugh - who used to ply the Maroon Town to Montego Bay route - had used a jack to elevate the vehicle so he could work on its underside. However, the jack slipped out of place and the vehicle fell on him. Waugh died from his injuries despite attempts from nearby residents to assist him.

Rosetta Griffiths, Wellesly's girlfriend, recounted that just prior to his death, he had asked her to wash some work clothes for him.

"Mi did down a yard a wash, and mi look about his breakfast. Mi did have one suit of clothes for him that him work in, and him say I must wash it. Mi say, 'Mi nah wash til tomorrow,' and him say 'No, you have to wash it today,'" Griffiths said of her last conversation with Waugh.

"When I finished the clothes and I was inside, mi hear one lady call me and say 'Run come ya,' and mi run around and come," Griffiths added. "When mi come, the lady say, 'Where's Bobby?' I said 'Bobby gone long time,' and she said 'What you mean, Bobby gone long time? See the bus drop on Bobby.'"

Griffiths said that she is in still in a state of shock and has not slept well since the incident.

"Mi did think mi did a go dead. Is a hard something to get over...it happened three days now and mi nuh sleep. Mi not even know how it happen," said Griffiths.