Crash victim fights to walk again

For the past four months, Jordan Fisher has endured unimaginable pain and hardship after being struck by a bus.

Despite suffering multiple broken bones, he remains determined to overcome his injuries and walk again. On October 8, while on his way to work, Fisher got off a bus along Mandela Highway in St Andrew, and attempted to cross the road. As he stepped out, a car stopped to let him pass, but before he could make it across, a bus overtaking the car hit him.

"Di bus come outta nowhere," Fisher said. "When mi see it a come, enuh, mi all did realise mi couldn't mek it cross and mi start step back. But mi couldn't step back fast enough, and di bus lick mi," Fisher recalled. The driver sped away, but police later found the bus further down the road with a damaged radiator. The driver was arrested. Fisher was rushed to the hospital, where doctors discovered he had fractured ribs, his left leg was broken in two places, and his right leg was broken in three. With metal pins now holding his legs together, Fisher relies on a wheelchair to move around. He told THE STAR that the impact of the accident has been devastating for both him and his family.

"Dis change mi life whole heap because mi used to active--mi go a work, come home, deh yah wid mi bredda and sista dem. And mi used to do mi running and play ball," he shared. "It mek mi guh through a whole heap a pain and agony, sleepless nights, some painful mornings. But mi still try mi best fi hold on firm." Beyond the physical pain, the accident has taken a heavy toll on his mental well-being.

"It get to mi man, because mi feel like a burden sometimes. Mi cyah do things fi miself and mi need somebody fi help mi--mi mother, mi father, or who deh round mi. Suh more while it stress mi, and mi lose whole heap a weight because mi cah move around and help miself," he admitted.

Fisher's mother, Tiffany Bowes, who is also his main caregiver, is unemployed and is struggling to care for him while looking after her three younger children. Although his medical care at Kingston Public Hospital is free, transportation costs for therapy and check-ups are overwhelming.

"It hard, but mi afi do weh mi afi do," she said.

"Mi really appreciate mi family, especially mi father, because a him help mi most time," Bowes added.

Earlier this month, Fisher began physical therapy, his first step toward reclaiming his mobility. The experience has renewed his hope.

"Di first time, to me, was a success because it mek mi feel alive again. It mek mi feel like, yeah, mi aguh walk again," he said with a smile, adding that although the road ahead is long, he is determined to push through.

"Mi afi believe seh mi aguh walk again, enuh, because a whole heap a promises mi mek to mi madda. Mi promise fi buy har first house and mi promise fi buy har a car, and mi aguh do it," he vowed.

Still, the accident has left Fisher traumatised, making him fearful whenever he is near moving traffic.

"If mi a guh pan di road, is like mi nuh wah mi wheelchair deh nuh weh near nuh road, like which part car a pass. Sometimes all when mi inna car, mi nervous, and mi hold on to mi seat belt tight because di accident will flash back inna mi mind," he admitted, urging both drivers and pedestrians to be more careful on the roads.

"Nuh haste nuh worth you injuring somebody or taking somebody life," he said.