On Friday night we told you about the highway cleanup called Walk For A Green Belize. It's a great initiative to pick up garbage along all 77 miles of the George Price Highway. Recycler Elroy Jones was a part of that effort - he was part of the cleanup crew sweeping up the bags of garbage that the volunteers had collected. But, a terrible accident happened; when he fell off the truck he was working on, and was crushed under its wheels. Sahar Vasquez has more on the loss of the 39 year old father of three:
Sahar Vasquez reporting
39-year-old Elroy Jones showed up to work at the sanitary landfill on Saturday to work for a good cause, picking up the bags of trash left by those participating in the big clean along the George Price Highway.
But near Jaguar Paw - a day of doing a community cleanup turned into tragedy
Ayesha Graham, Cousin
"When we reached by Jaguar Paw, I just heard something go "blup blup" so I saw his best friend run by the truck and told us what happened."
"It was an accident because he was on the truck. The towhead going up and a seat was right there and his friend was on the other side. He saw a bag and his friend said to leave the bag. But he said "I got this" but it looks like he was already drunk. His friend told him to stay there because you are drunk. He said that was not drunk. Looks like he grabbed the bag and he slipped right under the truck and the truck ran over him and mashed his brains."
"Only that I saw. I saw my cousin under the truck. We can't bring him back because he already went all we could is bury him."
"It was not the driver's fault. He was not driving that fast. He was driving slow. It was his fault because when he saw a bag he wanted to go and get it. The bag made him slip."
Jones's friends and family members said he was calm and easy going, and, most importantly Elroy Jones was a father to three kids that have now lost their father in a freak accident. He did not live with the mother of his children who maintained custody, but she explained what an emotional blow this is for her children that adored their father.
Sherilee Barrow, Ex Partner/Mother of his 3 children
"That is the thing that hurt us the most because what could he have done so wrong to deserve that kind of death because he was a cool man. He did not have any problems with anyone. He wasn't a troubled man the only thing with him is that he liked to take his little taste every now and again. That is how he enjoyed himself."
Sahar Vasquez, reporter
"Was the kids close to their dad?"
Sherilee Barrow
"They had a good relationship with their dad no matter what. They didn't care about how he looked or what kind of job he had."
"Those kids will never stop loving their dad. They would hug and kiss him. They had a close relationship. I always used to sit down out here when he came to hail the children and admire that even though we are not together. We were still friends."
The truck driver, 19 year old Cornelius Schmitt was issued with a Notice of intended prosecution.
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