Transport Minister Daryl Vaz said he’d ordered a review of the emergency plans at the Sangster International Airport in the wake of a visitor dying at the Montego Bay St James facility after striking his head in a fall earlier this month.

The review is expected to be an annual occurrence and is made necessary by the increase in the number of passengers that come through the airport per year.

The minister also said that a doctor is now on call at the airport, in addition to an ambulance with a full support team being stationed there.   

The move follows the death of Leroy Smith, who reportedly bled to death on the floor of the airport after he struck his head in a fall on Wednesday, September 4.

The issue gained widescale attention after a woman — who said her offer to pay for Smith’s transport to the hospital was rebuffed on the grounds of protocol violation — took to social media to recount the incident. She said the service rendered by the airport nurse who turned up 30 minutes after Smith got injured left much to be desired.

Then there was the issue of the availability of an ambulance. 

In a release on Friday, Vaz said he’s received reports from the operators of the airport, MBJ Airports Limited, and the Airports Authority of Jamaica (AAJ) — the Jamaican agency charged with the responsibility to provide oversight of the airport. He said he awaits the report from the Jamaica Civil Aviation Authority (JCAA).

“I’ve ordered a review to be done immediately to include the Ministry of Health and (also) in the interim, I have instructed AAJ that a doctor should be on call at the location and an ambulance is to be stationary at the Montego Bay Airport with full complement of staff until such time as the review has been completed,” Vaz said.

The ambulance service has been engaged and is available at the airport from 7:00 am to 7:00 pm daily.

He said this is beyond the required standard.

“While we explore the possibility of putting in services over and above the standards that are established by the ICAO and the Civil Aviation Authority, it must be noted that the provision of an ambulance is not a necessary requirement at our international airports as per the international and local standards for operation of the airports,” Vaz said.

He added: “The requirement is that in addition to service established at the airport to have a facility and health professional on location, arrangements are to be in place with local health services, whether public or private.

“Nevertheless, the ministry will await the findings of the review and commits to have implemented by the operators, acceptable levels of service at the airports.”

At the same time, Vaz said he’s satisfied that the established requirements for the provision of health services in accordance with the JCAA Regulations, the Airport Services Manual and the standards of the International Civil Aviation Organisation are in place.