WESTERN BUREAU

Excessive speed might have cause a five-vehicle collision which claimed the life of a port security officer and left several persons injured along the Montpelier main road in St James yesterday.

Cotesha Gayle, 30, of bethel Town, Westmoreland, had to be cut from the mangled vehicle after her lower body was crushed. She was transporting her daughters, aged 11 and seven, to school along with their father and her niece to Montego Bay.

Pile-up of traffic

The accident resulted in a pile-up of traffic. It took over an hour for police and firefighters to remove the injured from the scene as curious onlookers converged. Gayle's daughters sustained head and facial injuries while their father, a policeman, and the niece reportedly broke their legs.

A witness said shortly before 8 a.m., a green Honda Civic motor car, travelling towards Montego Bay, crashed into several vehicles, including Gayle's Toyota Corolla. The Civic's engine became detached and flew a short distance before crashing into another Civic. The driver of the vehicle was admitted at the hospital in serious condition.

Gayle's family is still struggling to accept that the woman they described as loving, polite and kind-hearted has gone. Her former colleagues at the Sangster International Airport expressed sadness at her passing, saying she was one of the most reliable employees and that she kept in close contact though she no longer worked at the location.