标签： Jamaica

A deadly confrontation between Jamaican security forces and armed individuals in the Brown’s Lane area of Granville, St James, resulted in three fatalities early on New Year’s Day, including a four-year-old child, according to official reports from the Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF).

The incident unfolded when a joint police-military team responded to multiple reports of explosions and illegal firearm discharges in the community. Acting on intelligence indicating planned illegal gun salutes, security personnel encountered armed subjects who allegedly opened fire upon their arrival, prompting an exchange of gunfire.

Following the altercation, two adult males were discovered with fatal gunshot wounds and were subsequently pronounced dead at a nearby medical facility. Authorities confirmed the seizure of a high-powered rifle from the scene. Tragically, a young child also perished in the incident, while a 68-year-old woman sustained injuries and received medical treatment.

The JCF issued an official statement expressing profound regret for the child’s death and extending condolences to the affected family, while simultaneously emphasizing concern for all civilian casualties. The force has maintained a visible presence in the area to preserve public order and prevent further escalation.

In response to the shootings, Granville residents organized protests alleging excessive use of lethal force by law enforcement personnel. Official investigations into the circumstances surrounding the incident are currently underway, with oversight bodies conducting thorough examinations. The identities of the deceased males remain pending formal verification.

As the final hours of 2025 dwindled, downtown Kingston’s waterfront became the stage for a profound natural spectacle. A solitary observer stood witness to the year’s concluding sunset, its diminishing amber glow casting elongated reflections across the water’s surface. The celestial event unfolded as a seamless transition from diurnal radiance to crepuscular tranquility, with the sun’s descent marking both an astronomical occurrence and a symbolic passage of time.

The atmospheric conditions collaborated to create optimal viewing circumstances, with scattered cirrus clouds amplifying the chromatic intensity of the twilight panorama. This daily phenomenon carried exceptional significance as the ultimate solar disappearance of the calendar year, attracting both contemplative individuals and casual observers to the urban shoreline. The gradual dimming of luminosity paralleled the metaphorical closing of another annual cycle, offering a moment for collective reflection amid the bustling city’s gradual shift to evening activities.

Urban environmental specialists note that such waterfront vistas provide unique opportunities for atmospheric appreciation within municipal settings. The convergence of natural beauty and urban infrastructure in Kingston creates a distinctive tableau where residents can engage with celestial events without departing city limits. This intersection of the built environment and natural phenomena represents an increasingly valued aspect of metropolitan living, particularly during culturally significant moments like annual transitions.

The observed sunset adhered to precise astronomical calculations while simultaneously serving as an informal civic ceremony. Meteorological data indicates optimal visibility conditions prevailed throughout the Greater Kingston area, allowing unobstructed observation of the solar disk’s disappearance below the topographical horizon. This event concludes a yearly cycle of approximately 365 sunrises and sunsets, each possessing unique meteorological characteristics but none carrying the symbolic weight of this ultimate diurnal conclusion.

Cornwall Regional Hospital inaugurated the new year with a momentous occasion as it welcomed its inaugural newborn of 2026. The first birth occurred in the early hours of Thursday, January 1st, marking a celebratory start to the year for the medical facility.

The honor belongs to Devauney Vernon Jr., a healthy infant boy delivered precisely at 12:32 a.m. The newborn entered the world weighing 2.67 kilograms and measuring 47.5 centimeters in length.

The delivery was successfully managed under the expert care of a dedicated medical team. Registered midwife Kemicka Bartley performed the delivery, with registered midwife Hermine Levy Letman serving as the nurse in charge, ensuring a safe and professional birthing process.

The mother, Daina Johnson, a resident of King Street in Montego Bay, was reported to be radiant and joyful as she embarked on her New Year journey with her newborn son. This special event represents not only a personal milestone for the Johnson family but also a symbol of hope and new beginnings for the community served by Cornwall Regional Hospital.

Jamaica’s media landscape is mourning the loss of two iconic figures this week, with veteran broadcaster and educator Alma Mock Yen passing away on Wednesday at age 97. Her death comes just one day after the sudden passing of sports broadcaster Donald Oliver, creating a profound sense of loss within the nation’s media community.

Mock Yen, who had been in declining health, leaves behind an extraordinary legacy spanning broadcast journalism, education, politics, and the arts. Tributes poured in from across Jamaican society recognizing her multifaceted contributions to national development.

Culture Minister Olivia Grange celebrated Mock Yen as “a woman of class who distinguished herself in all of what she did for the many years that she spent in public life.” Her remarkable career began exceptionally early, with Mock Yen becoming one of Jamaica’s youngest school teachers at just 14 years old, instructing English language and literature at Merl Grove High School.

Her broadcast journalism career was pioneering, but perhaps her most enduring impact came through her leadership of The University of the West Indies Mona Campus Radio Unit, where she mentored generations of media professionals. “Her contributions were instrumental in shaping the landscape of media education and practice in Jamaica and the wider Caribbean,” Minister Grange emphasized.

The Press Association of Jamaica memorialized Mock Yen as “a respected and pioneering figure in the media landscape, known for her calm authority, incisive interviewing style, and unwavering commitment to journalistic integrity.” The association noted she set high standards for broadcast journalism and served as a role model particularly for women entering the profession.

Beyond media, Mock Yen broke barriers as one of Jamaica’s pioneering women in politics, serving as a parish councillor for the Jamaica Labour Party from 1981-1986. She was also an accomplished dancer who led her own dance troupe and received national honors including the Musgrave Medal and the Order of Distinction.

Colleagues and former students remembered her exacting standards and dedication. Veteran journalist David Geddes noted she “epitomised the adage ‘the word is mightier than the sword,’” while former KLAS FM head Neville James called her “a legend” whose influence on Jamaican media would endure through the countless practitioners she trained.

In a powerful response to catastrophic destruction, the Verona Foundation, established by Kerry-Ann Henry to honor her late mother’s legacy, has launched its inaugural humanitarian mission in Jamaica’s storm-battered parish of St Elizabeth. The initiative was catalyzed by Hurricane Melissa’s devastating landfall in late October, a Category 5 storm that claimed 45 lives and left widespread devastation across multiple parishes including Westmoreland, Hanover, St James, and Trelawny.

Henry, a Connecticut-based director of the New York Women’s Foundation who maintains deep roots in her Jamaican homeland, mobilized a 16-member relief team to deliver essential supplies to severely affected communities. The foundation’s December intervention targeted the districts of Slipe, Holland Village, and Burnt Savannah, where teams encountered families sheltering in makeshift structures with tarpaulin roofs and communities accessible only through debris-strewn roads littered with downed utility wires.

The relief effort, supported through strategic partnerships with American corporations including WestPoint Home, Welspun, Loftex Home, Silk Home, 1818 Mills, and Pem America Inc, distributed comprehensive care packages containing non-perishable food, purified water, hygiene kits, cleaning supplies, clothing, temporary shelters, portable sanitation facilities, and bedding materials.

Henry’s philanthropic commitment stems from childhood observations of her mother, Verona Whyte, an entrepreneurial force known for assisting vulnerable populations in Kingston’s Sherlock Crescent and other communities. Witnessing Melissa’s aftermath from abroad compelled Henry to transform compassion into concrete action, embodying her foundation’s commitment to fostering resilience through targeted generosity.

The Verona Foundation represents both a tribute to maternal benevolence and a structured response mechanism for future crises, demonstrating how diaspora connections can effectively channel international resources toward localized recovery efforts while maintaining dignity and solidarity with affected populations.