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LOCAL GOVERNMENT MINISTER MOURNS PASSING OF VETERAN ST. ANN FIREFIGHTER

Minister of Local Government and Community Development Hon. Desmond McKenzie is mourning the untimely death of Sergeant Lynford Hendricks, who passed away in hospital earlier on Monday.

“Sergeant Hendricks was an active and highly respected member of the firefighting professionals assigned to the Ocho Rios Fire Station. He was admitted to hospital last week, then transferred to another hospital in Kingston and was being treated when this unwelcome news emerged. Had he lived just another 39 days, he would have celebrated 26 years of distinguished service to this country, through the Jamaica Fire Brigade.

“Sadly also, Sergeant Hendricks died on the birthday of his former colleague Firefighter Larenzo Douse, who was killed in a motor vehicle accident on the Ocho Rios Main Road in November 2022. The preparations for officially renaming the Ocho Rios Fire Station in honour of Firefighter Douse are well underway, and  the death of Sergeant Hendricks has created an additional dimension of grief and pain for all the firefighters in St. Ann and beyond.

“This is a terrible time. I know that the Commissioner of the Fire Brigade and a host of personnel are extending themselves to offer support. The Ministry grieves, and I grieve at the loss of Sergeant Hendricks, and we extend to all his loved ones and friends our deepest condolences. We hope that in the coming days they will experience some level of healing. May he rest in peace and light eternal shine on him.”