The Tribune

By EARYEL BOWLEG

Tribune Staff Reporter

ebowleg@tribunemedia.net

THE death of Queen’s College head boy Dario Rahming on Saturday sent shockwaves through the school’s community.

The circumstances and cause of his death are unclear, but Dario - known as DJ to his schoolmates - collapsed during basketball practice. 

“He was an extraordinary young man and our hearts are broken,” the school posted to Facebook on Saturday. “We ask for your prayers for his family, friends, classmates and the entire Queen’s College community. We say that when one Comet shines, we all shine. But today, one of our Comets has fallen, so we fall as well.”

The school’s principal, Henry Knowles, told ZNS the student was on campus and collapsed.

He said the school followed proper protocols, adding that staff are trained to provide emergency CPR.

He said: “One of our nurses was on campus, she was outside with a sports event and she was able to be right there in place, she came and rushed to the clinic. 

 “The ambulances were called. They came in record time, and until then, we were doing everything we could on our side,” he said, calling the tragedy “a very hard moment”.

 “He’s our head boy and last week, I think it was, we did an installation of him and all our senior leaders. I can say when he came on stage to get his tie pinned on him, the entire school went nuts. Everybody absolutely loves him. He’s an extraordinary young man. You can put him in front as a poster of what we want the young men of the nation to be, and we’re all so heartbroken because of it.

 “He’s smart. He’s a devout Christian. He preaches.

 “He’s not a selfish young man. He’s well spoken. He’s humble. He’s very mannerly, and he’s caring.”

 He added: “This is a very hard moment for all of us and we’re praying for the family, you know, we’re praying for the entire staff and the Queen’s College community.”

 Across communities in The Bahamas, the death sent shockwaves - with churches holding prayers for Dario and his family. Meanwhile, numerous posts were made on social media sending condolences or offering prayers. 

 A fellow student said he felt sad when he heard about the death. He said it was “definitely a shock - unexpected, unforeseen”. He said: “Dario was amazing. Everyone loved him, everyone appreciated him - he was head boy. His mother was a teacher at the school.”

 The student added: “It’s definitely going to be a different sense in the air at school. The atmosphere is going to change. I remember him on the stage when he was getting installed as head boy and everyone was cheering for him. He will definitely be missed.”

 A parent spoke to The Tribune yesterday, saying: “It’s definitely a tragedy. It was really unexpected. I hope that the school will give parents more answers about what happened. I just really feel for his class, it’s a horrible thing to happen in their senior year. I really feel for his mother and his siblings and my heart goes out to them. As a parent, I just can’t imagine what they must be feeling. I hope they will provide the students with the support they need to overcome this tragedy.”