Daraine Luton, Staff Reporter

THE LUSH, green vegetation in Fellowship district that shelters the Rio Grande belies the tragedy which unfolded just after 8 p.m. in the cool Portland hills Friday.

It was supposed to be Eric Spence's Sabbath, and, like most believers who observe Saturday as the day of worship, he had laid down his tools for the day when he heard that a truck transporting vendors to the market fell off the road and on to a precipice.

"Sabbath or no Sabbath, I had to respond," Spence told The Sunday Gleaner moments after the market truck was pulled up from the precipice on to the roadway.

Devastated by loss of life

Spence's hands and clothes were caked with mud and his shoulders bowed, following a 12-hour rescue mission. Spence said he was devastated by the loss of lives - 14 in total.

"I saved a life, and I feel good about that. I have to thank God," Spence said.

The Portland native is among the scores of persons who responded favourably to the rescue mission. The Sunday Gleaner was told that residents used bottle torches to make their way through darkness, despite the slippery hillside leading to the wreckage, in a bid to rescue accident victims.

Emiel Crawford, a butcher who lived nearby, was summoned by Spence to help in the rescue. Crawford said that they ignored all the persons who were dead and focused on saving the man's life.

Sliced through metal

However, it was not until a welder arrived on the scene with equipment that Lynford Jackson was rescued. The welder sliced through metal with his machine and enough persons were ready to assist Jackson to the hospital.

Rackell Wilson, a nurse, despite helping at least one man to leave the crash site alive, was so touched by the experience, she repeated the word horrible 12 times while speaking with The Sunday Gleaner.

"I feel it extremely, to my veins, for the persons who have lost their loved ones. Their lives will never be the same again," Wilson said.

For Spence, the ordeal was "like a show (movie). I have never seen so many dead people at the same place in my life. This is something that will live with me for the rest of my life", he said.

daraine.luton@gleanerjm.com