The National Solid Waste Management Authority (NSWMA) is in mourning this week after one of its frontline workers, Okeen Lightfoot, lost his life in a devastating traffic accident that unfolded on All Saints Road Tuesday morning. The dedicated sanitation employee was struck by a passing motor vehicle while he was completing his routine roadside work duties, leaving a community of colleagues and local residents reeling from the sudden loss.
Within hours of the incident, NSWMA issued an official condolence statement honoring Lightfoot’s service and remembering his time with the agency. “We extend our deepest heartfelt condolences on the tragic passing of our colleague, Okeen Lightfoot,” the organization wrote in the release. “All of our prayers and thoughts are with his family, friends, and fellow teammates during this unimaginably difficult time.”
The tragedy has sent shockwaves through both the NSWMA workforce and the broader local community. Longstanding concerns over the safety of roadside employees, who often work close to moving traffic to keep public spaces clean and functional, have been reignited in the wake of Lightfoot’s death. Many safety advocates and community members are now reiterating urgent calls for all motorists to exercise increased care and attention when traveling near zones where workers are operating along roadways.
Earlier on the same day of the accident, Jamaica’s Health Minister Michael Joseph traveled to the site of the collision to assess the situation. During his visit, the minister echoed the growing calls for heightened road vigilance, urging all drivers across the country to embrace greater responsibility behind the wheel to prevent similar preventable tragedies from occurring in the future.