THREE TIMES LUCKY - St Bess man explains how he got the name ‘Bruk Up’

St Elizabeth resident Ashman Clarke strongly believes that he is one of the luckiest and blessed men alive after he was almost greeted by the angel of death three times.

The 44-year-old said his first near-death experience came in 2001 when he was working at a hardware in the parish, when a forklift got out of control and crushed his right leg.

"It lick mi first and mi drop a dirt and then the two small wheel dem run over mi right foot. By now everbody realise what a gwan and the two big wheel dem with the two fork a come fi run over the foot now. A man see say it a come fi crush out di foot clean clean, and him jump inna di forklift and drive back di likkle wheel over it," he said.

Writhing in pain, Clarke, who has since been nicknamed Bruk Up, said he prayed while he was being rushed to hospital for doctors to amputate the leg to rid him of the agony.

"Mi a bawl out 'woiii' and the foot start swell. It was one of the worst time inna mi life. The leg did fracture and mi stay in hospital for a while. I suffered for a very long time with that. It took me months to get back to work and I had to get another job," he said. Still recovering, Clarke said it appeared the devil wanted his mobility, as barely a year later, his left leg was injured.

"Mi just get pay and feel nice and say mi and the driver a guh pon a flex. Mi stop at a shop and a cross back the road and is a pick-up dat a come at full 100 and hit mi and drop mi inna di road. Mi not even feel when mi get the lick. Mi just know the entire place get dark and mi hear a lady a ask if dem a go make mi stay deh and dead, and a deso mi realise say a mi she a talk," Clarke said.

He said the driver transported him to the Savanna-la-Mar Hospital. He was later transferred to the Cornwall Regional Hospital in St James, where his leg was fitted with surgical screws and pins. Unbelievably, a few years later, he suffered another accident while riding a bicycle.

"Mi a gwan pon di bicycle and a car a overtake a next car and it a come right inna mi, and when mi see it a come inna mi, mi chuck offa di road and drop inna a ditch and the right foot hurt up back and mi have to rush to doctor. Mi salt when it come on to car and dem ting deh, but thank God mi survive and mi still have mi foot dem, and is dats why dem call mi Bruk Up," Clarke added.

Despite all his misfortunes, Clarke said he still has plenty to smile about as he was recently fitted with brand new teeth. The gardener lost his first set of front teeth over a decade ago while he was eating a mango.

"Mi get more than one kiss from mi girlfriend and everywhere mi get so much compliment and everywhere mi guh, dem a tell mi how mi look nice. Bare girls a rush mi now and even before I put in the teeth dem, di girls dem did love mi. But mi know the 'no teeth ting' use to back dem off, suh it a get better now," he said.

Clarke got his new teeth through the Ministry of Health and Wellness' Second Chance Smiles Oral Health and Dentures Replacement initiative. The programme plans to give 10,000 Jamaicans under the age of 60 an opportunity to get free dentures through the country's public-run dental centres.