‘I wished she had made it’ - St Mary woman shaken after nurse dies in her arms

What began as an ordinary workday for Velanda Murray turned into a heartbreaking moment that will forever remain etched in her memory -- the day she held a dying nurse in her arms.

Around 5:45 p.m. on Tuesday, December 31, Murray, an assistant supervisor at UBBE Beauty and Gift in Port Maria, St Mary, was alerted by her supervisor that someone needed help.

"I saw when she (the nurse) walked in and at one point, she leaned on a shelf, but then she stand up back," Murray recounted.

"My supervisor was sitting right there, and suddenly I heard her scream, 'Help!' But because, during the day, my supervisor said she wasn't feeling well, I ran to her, thinking she needed help. But when I got there and looked down the aisle, I saw the nurse on the ground," Murray added, her voice trembling as she recalled the scene.

Rushing to the nurse's side, Murray was met with a distressing sight. "When I got to her, foam was coming from her mouth, and her eyes were popping out of her head. So I ran and called the security for help; and same time mi run outside and stop a taxi, and asked them to take her to the hospital."

Murray and her supervisor accompanied the nurse in the taxi. "On the way to the hospital, she was groaning. I kept telling her, 'We're almost there.' But after a while, she stopped moving. So, I checked her pulse and felt nothing," Murray recounted, her voice heavy with sorrow.

Upon arrival at the hospital, Murray stayed behind, hopeful for good news. But within minutes, her hope was shattered -- doctors confirmed that the nurse, said to be a Guyanese national who worked at Port Maria Hospital in St Mary, had died.

"This happened on the 31st, and it wasn't until last Tuesday that I got some sleep for the first time," the 29-year-old shared, her words laced with grief.

"Every time I close my eyes, I see her, and to know that she was just leaving work, trying to get home. She was so close but didn't make it. It could happen to anybody. You could just be going about your day, and something happens, and you don't make it home to your family," Murray said.

Despite the overwhelming sorrow, Murray has been deeply touched by the outpouring of support from nurses and residents of the nurse's community. Many have stopped by her workplace to express their gratitude.

"As much mi grateful for all the kindness and kind words, I really wished she had made it, because knowing that she died in my arms is really a terrible feeling," she said, her eyes glossy, on the brink of tears.