Montego Bay’s Dawn Patrol
Meet the woman keeping the city clean before sunrise
Published:Friday | June 6, 2025 | 12:09 AMAdrian Frater/Gleaner Writer
WESTERN BUREAU:
If you find yourself on the streets of Montego Bay, St James, between 4:30 and 6:30 a.m., chances are you’ll spot one familiar face – Hyacinth Carey, better known as ‘Dawn’ or affectionately as ‘Ma Barka’. As a public-cleansing supervisor with the National Solid Waste Management Authority (NSWMA), Dawn is a fixture in the early morning hustle to keep the city spotless.
“I am out here every morning at 4:30 to see that the city is properly cleaned,” the 65-year-old grandmother, who is renowned for her sharp tongue and no-nonsense attitude, told The Gleaner yesterday.
“If the city is not properly cleaned, you will have people taking photos and videos and sending them out to show their unhappiness, and I don’t want that to happen, so I make sure the residents wake up to a clean city every day,” she said ahead of today’s observance of National Solid Waste Day.
Although her official schedule only requires her to work five days a week, Dawn works all seven. Why? Because she loves her job and can’t stand the thought of leaving any task unfinished.
“On Sunday mornings, you will find me at the Charles Gordon Market supervising the cleaning up … . This is a place where we get our food, so it must be kept as clean as possible,” said Dawn, who resides in the Catherine Hall section of Montego Bay. “This is my city, so I want to see it clean … . I really love my job, and maybe that is what motivates me to go out there every morning to make sure the city is clean.”
DEDICATED
Though she officially retired a year ago, Dawn was asked to stay on for another two years – a testament to her dedication. She has become somewhat of a legend, not just for her work ethic but also for her outspoken personality, which some interpret as being miserable. It was this trait, she believes, that led former Prime Minister Edward Seaga to dub her ‘Ma Barka’.
“Mr Seaga said I miserable and also ready to argue for what I believe in,” the unapologetic Labourite told The Gleaner. “I am now loading up for a third term under the leadership of Prime Minister Dr Andrew Holness.”
While not ascribing any political motive, Dawn said that when the People’s National Party won the general election in 2011, she was transferred to Hanover, and she went there with the same positive attitude she had in St James.
“When I was transferred to Hanover, I went there and did a great job,” said Dawn, who attended the City Mission School on Railway Lane in downtown Montego Bay and later Anchovy High School, also in St James. “When I was transferred back to St James, the mayor of Lucea did not want me to leave because they were quite pleased with the way I did my job.”
A stickler for cleanliness, Dawn has little patience for people who carelessly discard garbage.
“Sometimes people stay in their vehicle and throw their garbage towards the garbage bin, and it falls short, and instead of picking it up and disposing of it properly, they just leave it at the same place,” said Dawn. “When they do that, we have to pick it up because it is our business to keep the city clean.”
Despite being still physically capable and maintaining her undying love for her job, Dawn is nonetheless looking forward to next year when she will retire – again – and have more free time to spend with her three daughters and six grandchildren.
“I am a mother of four daughters. Gunman kill one a few years ago, so now I have just three,” said Dawn. “I am looking forward to be home relaxing with my grandkids … . We will be going to the beach and doing a lot of swimming and exercising and just having fun,” said Dawn. “Until that time, I will continue to be out on the road at 4:30 every morning to make sure that residents wake up to a clean city each new day.”