The grieving mother of an 18-year-old young man, who tragically lost his life while trying to rescue a woman swept away by floodwaters in the Sandy Gully at Waltham Park, St. Andrew, Kingston, Jamaica expressed her heartache yesterday, holding on to hope that her son would have been found alive.

“Last night, I couldn’t come to grips. I didn’t want to believe it—I was praying for a miracle,” said Donna George, visibly shaken and lost in thought. “I didn’t want to accept it, but after 2 a.m. going on 3 a.m., when I woke up and realized he was really gone, that’s when reality hit me.”

Her son, Rahjaun Melbourne, was found on Wednesday by three young men in the gully near some bushes in Majesty Gardens, a day after he was washed away by the floodwaters. Melbourne had jumped into the gully on Tuesday to try and rescue a woman who had fallen in while attempting to save pigs during heavy rain. The woman was later rescued by another individual.

Despite her son’s disappearance, George held on to hope. “I really couldn’t believe it. I was in denial,” she said, recalling the moment she learned her son’s body had been found.

She was not surprised by Melbourne’s heroic act, noting his generous and caring nature. “He was always helping others, that’s just how he was. He had a heart of gold.”

George expressed shock upon hearing the news from her daughter on Tuesday, especially since Melbourne had complained of not feeling well earlier that day. “I kept asking, what was he doing out there in the rain when he wasn’t feeling good? But I heard he went to work, because a man told me he had just brought him some water before it all happened.”

Describing her son as affectionate, kind, and sociable, George smiled as she recalled how he would often hug his family members or sneak them something to eat. His sudden loss hit his siblings hard, particularly his sister, as they shared a close bond.

Meanwhile, the three young men who discovered Melbourne’s body, Leka Reid, Anthony Copeland, and Shamoy Lloyd shared how they were haunted by his cries for help the day before, unable to sleep that night. The trio got up early Wednesday to resume their search, which eventually led to the tragic discovery.

“Him was trying to save the woman, but he passed her. He was holding onto a tree limb, then a big fridge came down and hit him. He dipped underwater, came back up, and then the bridge hit him again,” they recalled together.

The teenagers said they had searched for Melbourne late into Tuesday evening but could not find him. Determined, they resumed the search early Wednesday, finally spotting his hands in the bushes and pulling him out.

One of the young men expressed frustration at the circumstances of Melbourne’s death. “I feel terrible because the people saw him drowning, but instead of helping him, they were more concerned with saving the pigs.”