Belizeans from near and far spread the shocking news, through different mediums, that Stephen Alex Hall, 35, also known due to his profession as a disc jockey as “DJ Scorpio,” had died as a result of a horrific 4-man motorcycle crash on the Boom Road, on Saturday, February 11, 2012, shortly after 8:00 a.m.
Persons to whom we spoke, including a witness and a friend of Hall, told us that Hall was one of two men not wearing a helmet in the group of four motorcyclists that morning. They hinted that had he been wearing a helmet, he possibly may have lived.
According to a witness to the accident, the motorcyclists were riding in a weekly Boom Road bicycle race that starts at the junction of the Northern Highway and the Boom Road, and ends at the starting point after circling the Belmopan Roundabout. On this day, a total of fifty cyclists were in the race.
The race, which is sponsored by Ray Cattouse and others, normally starts between 5:30 and 6:00 a.m. We were told, however, that it had started a little later around 7:00 a.m., on Saturday.
Police reports say that at approximately 8:00 a.m., they responded to the scene of the traffic accident and found four motorcycles with “extensive damages” on the left side of the road. Police say that two other motorcyclists, Marlon Smith, 47, an electrical engineer and resident of Belize City, and Alwin Gonzalez, 31, a car dealer, sustained minor cuts and bruises, while a third motorcyclist, Andrew Ordonez, 49, a business owner, sustained a broken right foot and broken left hand.
The traffic accident happened directly in front of the Bacab Eco Park entrance, which is situated on a curve on the Boom Road a short distance from the finish line.
The police say that one of the motorcyclists attempted to overtake another motorcyclist, but that in doing so, he lost control of his motorcycle, which caused a chain reaction. The other three motorcyclists also lost control of their motorcycles and they all “crashed”, slamming into rocks and palm trees to the right side of the road leading back to the Northern Highway.
Ernest “Jawmaine” Meighan, an accomplished cyclist who was late for this specific race, witnessed the collision and told us that Gonzalez was the only motorcyclist who seemed to have experience, because, unlike the others who had “mashed brakes” in order to avoid crashing, Gonzalez, who had a female passenger, also without helmet, continued on with the same speed, landing relatively unhurt next to the collision.
Meighan also told us that in his view, Ordonez and Hall had suffered the same injury – the only difference “was that Ordonez had on his helmet.”
“I had a flat a couple yards from the finish line. I was trying to fix the flat tire so that I could watch the finishing of the race when I heard the sound of the motorcycles.
“Before fixing my wheel I saw four cycles coming and one of the guys lost control. I think that made the other guys lose focus on the curve, because they didn’t realize that the curve was right on them. Ordonez and Scorpio lost control and Alwin [Gonzalez] had more experience; all he ended up doing was skating in the mud and water,” Meighan said.
Meighan said that after the crash, he rushed over to render aid: “Actually, Ordonez’s cycle was on Scorpio’s [Hall] back, and that’s when I took off my riding shoes. I realized they had been badly hurt. I pushed the cycle off his back; he didn’t say anything; I lifted up his head, and blood was pouring all down his face.”
Hall succumbed to his injuries during transportation to the Karl Heusner Memorial Hospital (KHMH).
Meighan told us that he has been a cyclist for over 20 years but this is the first accident he has witnessed throughout his career. He told us, “This right here shows us the difference in wearing the helmet, and not wearing a helmet; what saved Ordonez was wearing the helmet.”
We also spoke with a disc jockey affiliate and long-time friend of Hall, James “DJ Busch” Busch, who told us that he will be terribly missed.
“It’s a very sad time for me,” he said.
The two men have been friends since 1995, and had even founded the Belizean Movements together in 2000.
“For a blow like this, I don’t see anybody who can fit the shoes of Scorpio,” Busch commented.
He went on to say of Hall, “He had a big heart. He could take down a turntable and set it back up; he could build speakers. He was like, part mechanic and all of that; he was a very special person.
“He was a very kind person, helping not only DJ’s around him, but also anyone who came for advice. He was willing to give that knowledge or help you out. Very good-hearted person – always smiling; he was never the hyped-up person; from the entire Belizean Movements, he was the real cool one. He was like the laid-back guy; me and DJ Dalla were like the hyped up ones at the forefront, like the main attraction, but the behind person was the main character for us.
“His main thing was sound; he wanted to look good and sound good; Scorpio was a person in a class by himself.”
A little over a year ago in the Amandala of Sunday, January 9, 2011, under the heading, “Motorcyclists not using safety gears in official races,” we reported on the safety measures for motorcyclists in official races.
The article was particularly focused on the 2011 Krem New Year’s Cycling Classic, in the unfolding of which, it was brought to our attention, that the majority of motorcyclists were not wearing the proper gear, and were also speeding.
We spoke with the president of the Belize Cycling Association, Emil Moreno, who told us that their official members wore jerseys and were always fitted with safety gear. He told us that other persons normally enter into the race unofficially, and are the main ones speeding.
He also told us that this is a yearly issue for the association due to the lack of manpower on the ground during the time of the races.
The National Institute of Culture and History sent out a press release which sympathized with Hall’s family on his sudden passing. Hall was a sound technician at the Bliss Centre for the Performing Arts for over seven years.
The release said, “…his contribution to the arts in Belize as disc jockey and musical technician is quite substantial, and he will surely be missed.
“His death leaves a void in the hearts of many Belizeans who will remember him most for his quiet, humble and charming ways, and his talented fingers in spitting tune after tune on the turntable and bringing to us quality music.
“Our hearts are saddened with grief as we keep his family and many friends in mind, and we can only offer our condolences. May his memory live on.”
The Hall family wishes to thank everyone for their outpouring of condolences and sympathy in the loss of their son.