St. John Artist Annie Higham Dies In Early Morning Car Accident

Popular St. John artist, well known for her Love City Festival T-shirts and St. John Telephone Directory covers, Annie “Love” Higham died in a car accident early Saturday morning, May 2, in Estate Upper Carolina in Coral Bay.

Higham and her boyfriend Brian Hadley were driving down the lower section of the Upper Carolina access road around 5:45 a.m. on Saturday morning when their red Suzuki Sidekick veered off the roadway and plunged about 70 feet over a steep wooded hillside above Centerline Road.

Higham, who had celebrated her 39th birthday only days before the accident, was pronounced dead at 7:10 a.m. at Myrah Keating Smith Community Health Center. Hadley was reportedly released from MKSCHC after being thoroughly examined for scrapes and bruises.

Upper Carolina neighbors first heard a noise like a landslide early Saturday morning and then Hadley shouting Higham’s name. A resident in the area called 911, who contacted the Coral Bay Fire Station and St. John Rescue as neighbors came out to see what had happened.  

“As I came down the hill, other neighbors were also converging and the fire truck was there with us all looking for the exact location — based on hearing one of the victims yelling for help,” said Sharon Coldren who lives in the area. “We located the car, and the point of access. The fire EMTs immediately began the long descent down the slope, while some of us went for long ropes from a nearby house, and other neighbors helped out.”

“Within minutes St. John Rescue had arrived,” Coldren said. “By the time the ambulance arrived at 6:25am, the rescue sled was ready to be lowered to Centerline Road to the ambulance. Unfortunately, nothing could be done for Annie, she had died in the accident.”