Police were forced to knock off the lock on a gate at the Milton Cato Memorial Hospital (MCMH) to get medical attention for a dying man.{{more}}

As the life of the gunshot victim hung in the balance, the security guard who had the key went to have a snack with the key in his pocket.

Ashley “Semore” Warren, 29, of Largo Heights, was shot to the left side of his neck at Long Wall.

A companion of Warren’s drove him to the Central Police Station and police immediately rushed him to the MCMH and tried to get to the Accident and Emergency Department via the gate adjacent to Rose Place.

However, when the police vehicle arrived, onlookers watched as the police were unable to enter the compound, as the security officer that should have been on duty at Ambulance Bay was nowhere to be found.

“Someone should have been at the Ambulance Bay, but he went to get something to eat with the key in his pocket,” Hospital Administrator Fitzroy Jones told SEARCHLIGHT.

Jones, as he has done in the past, told SEARCHLIGHT that he was very disappointed with service being rendered by hospital security personnel.

He said that it is unacceptable for a security guard to leave his post, in such a critical place, without informing a fellow officer and handing over the keys.

Warren died about an hour after arriving at the hospital, but in an area where every second counts, Jones is understandably upset about what transpired.

Meanwhile, Permanent Secretary (ag) in the Ministry of Health, Lanceford Weekes, told SEARCHLIGHT that a comprehensive security plan for the hospital is being put in place, which will have input from Commissioner of Police Keith Miller.