(Jamaica Gleaner) The Portland Municipal Corporation has been plunged into mourning following the passing of Irvin Brown, the councillor for the Fellowship division in Portland Eastern.
Brown, 61, passed away on Tuesday morning in the Intensive Care Unit at the University Hospital of the West Indies, where he was hospitalised for over three weeks.
He had tested positive for COVID-19.
“He was being sustained on a ventilator,” disclosed Paul Thompson, Mayor of Port Antonio and a close friend of the deceased.
He added, “I visited him at hospital about a week ago and he was unresponsive. The nurse tried repeatedly to get him to respond, but it was unsuccessful. It is a sad period for all of us at the Portland Municipal Corporation and despite his adverse situation, we were all hoping that he would pull through. I was quite shock to know that he was so sick. He was a committed councillor who wanted the best for his division.”
Brown was first admitted at the Port Antonio Hospital following the September 3 general elections, after he was reportedly diagnosed with COVID-19.
His condition reportedly worsened and he was transferred to St Ann’s Bay Hospital, then to Kingston.
The councillor, who won on a Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) ticket in 2016, reportedly had co-morbidities.
Meantime, Member of Parliament for Portland Eastern, Ann-Marie Vaz, said that she is devastated by Brown’s passing.
In a statement, Vaz stated that she shared a close relationship and deep love for Brown, who she said was truly committed to improving the lives of residents.
Brown defeated veteran councillor and former mayor, Benny White, in the 2016 local government elections.
The passing now leaves a vacancy in the Fellowship division, which is expected to be filled in short order ahead of the much-anticipated local government elections.
