VOINJAMA – A 28-year-old man has died after accidentally falling from a mango tree in Voinjama.

On April 12, Fedell fell from the tree while climbing to pick a fruit to each. He sustained a serious head injury and was taken to a health facility, where Physician Assistant Koryan Zaizay pronounced him dead several hours later. Fedell, who was a Guinean who had been living in Voinama for three years and working as a carpenter, was buried the next day.

In an interview with The Bush Chicken, Fedell’s friend, Tamba Phillip, explained that he was on site when the incident took place. He recalled that, upon seeing a tree containing ripe fruits, Fedell was “quick in pursuit of the mangos.” “But I adviced him that the branches were too young for [a] heavy weighted person like him, and later it all ended up at the bottom of the tree, where he fell helplessly,” Philip said.

Philip, also a contractor, said life had become difficult and finding food was now tough. Before looking for mangos, he said he and Fedell had just come from hunting but caught nothing. As carpenters, he said they could no longer get contracts to allow them to provide for themselves. “See, before, we had lot of contracts to do, but right now we are doing nothing, and how do you expect us to live,” he added. Fedell’s uncle, Korje Tosah, said he was grief-stricken by the death of his elder brother’s son.

“I provided all of the necessary support for him, but today, he’s no more,” a teary-eyed Tosah said.

The head of the Kissi tribe in Voinjama District, of which Fedell was a member, expressed regret over the accident. Davis Viskinda cautioned the youth to be mindful of how they go about their normal activities. Meanwhile, the Liberia National Police in Lofa has confirmed that the incident was an accident.

Featured photo by Kelvin Kollie