Several dead, missing after minibus plunges into sea in St. Vincent

By SNO Staff – Monday, January 12th, 2015 at 10:38 AM

Three people are reported missing after a minibus carrying several passengers, including students, plunged into the sea in northwestern St. Vincent today.

The minibus was reportedly travelling from Fancy to Kingstown, when the incident occurred.

Reports are there are three survivors, five dead, and three persons missing.

The accident occurred at Rockgutter, a community between Owia and Fancy, the country’s northern-most village, police was quoted as saying by a local news agency.

A source in St. Vincent told St. Lucia News Online (SNO) that “bodies are floating on the water, because of the high waves it’s difficult to get some of the bodies”.
-For more:: http://www.stlucianewsonline.com/several-dead-missing-after-minibus-plunges-into-sea-in-st-vincent/#sthash.kuQTtjNx.dpuf

Inner Peace
If you can start the day without caffeine,
If you can always be cheerful, ignoring aches and pains,
If you can resist complaining and boring people with your troubles,
If you can eat the same food every day and be grateful for it,
If you can understand when your loved ones are too busy to give you any time,
If you can take criticism and blame without resentment,
If you can conquer tension without medical help,
If you can relax without alcohol,
If you can sleep without the aid of drugs.

….. then You Are Probably
The Family Dog!
IMAGE: http://1funny.com/inner-peace/

Do you know how long food will keep in the freezer?

From The Kitchn
My freezer is the repository for all un-eaten things great and small. That last pork chop no one wanted? In the freezer! A batch of pierogi for fall meals? In the freezer! Some strawberries about to go bad? Yup, in the freezer! With so much going in there, it might be weeks or (more likely) months before I get around to using many of these things. Which raises some good questions: How long do freezer foods really keep? Do they have an expiration date?
There’s a short and a long answer here. The short answer is that foods will keep indefinitely in a frozen state. That’s right — as long as your freezer is plugged in and functioning normally, frozen foods will never expire, go bad, or pose any health issues.
I’m sure many of you are giving me quizzical looks right now, so let’s jump into the longer answer: while foods will technically keep forever, they do not actually stay tasty forever.
Freezer burn is the foe of any frozen food. It creeps into packages, covers once-delicious foods with frost, and then sucks the moisture out of them. When thawed, foods that developed freezer burn look desiccated and limp. You can cook them, technically, but they will lack good flavor or texture.
Freezer burn is inevitable in even the most well-packaged foods. Vacuum sealing is the best deterrent. Second to that is sucking or pressing as much air out of your package as possible. This is one big reason why I use plastic bags for freezer foods instead of other containers — it’s much easier to get the air out of a bag than a stiff plastic or glass container.
As a general rule of thumb, frozen food will keep for three months in a standard home freezer before starting to show signs of freezer burn. This is true for raw meats, cooked meats, prepared foods, breads, and anything else you might think of freezing. This said, if you pull something out of the freezer that’s older than three months and it doesn’t show signs of freezer burn, it’s probably still good to eat. How the food was packaged, how often you opened the freezer (which quickens freezer burn), and other factors can extend the “shelf life” of your frozen food.
Do you find this to be true? How long do you keep foods in your freezer?
See attached chart

For more: http://www.thekitchn.com/do-you-know-how-long-foods-will-keep-in-the-freezer-194281

One quarter of LatAm population to own smartphone by end 2014 – eMarketer
By Andrew Rogers From BNamericas
The number of individuals in Latin America who own at least one smartphone is set to increase to 146mn – or roughly a quarter of the region’s population – at the end of this year, up from 114mn at the end of 2013, according to new figures from digital marketing consultancy eMarketer.
Strong growth is set to continue in the coming years, with total smartphone owners in the region reaching 243mn at the end of 2017.
Latin America’s largest countries Brazil and Mexico are set to account for 51.2% of smartphone owners in the region this year, with 41.2mn in the former and 33.3mn in the latter.
Meanwhile, smartphone users in Argentina will reach 12.7mn this year, and other countries in the region will have 58.4mn smartphone users by the end of this year, according to the release.
Smartphone growth in Argentina is being hampered by policies aimed at reducing high-tech device imports and incentivizing domestic production.
Smartphone growth in Brazil will reach annual rates of 26.7% through 2017, while that figure will reach 24.3% in Mexico, 18.1% in Argentina and combined growth of 27.0% in other Latin American markets.
Improvements in network infrastructure, legislative reforms and declining mobile data prices were key factors driving smartphone growth in Latin America during 2013, eMarketer said.
New shipments of tablet and smartphone devices to Latin America are set to increase by 28% to 142mn this year, according to IDC. However, many of these will likely be purchased by individuals who have previously owned a smartphone, as oppose to first-time buyers.
For more on this story go to:
http://www.bnamericas.com/news/telecommunications/one-quarter-of-latam-population-to-own-smartphone-by-end-2014-emarketer

China Voice: China, Latin America ties mean a lot to world
From Xinhuanet
BEIJING, Jan. 9 (Xinhua) — The latest deals between China and Latin America could evolve into a new model of South-South cooperation and help bring about a new world order.
The first ministerial meeting of the Forum of China and the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC) was a step toward a community of shared destiny.
Addressing the meeting which ended on Friday, Chinese President Xi Jinping suggested all sides treat each other on an equal footing; be flexible and practical, cooperating in pursuit of shared interests and win-win results. Be open and inclusive, said the president. Attend to the interests of all.
The outcome of the meeting includes the Beijing Declaration and a five-year plan nailing down key areas for cooperation.
China’s “new normal” offers new opportunities for the world. Latin American and Caribbean states have never been in such a strong position to take advantage of those opportunities.
Latin America has “a historic opportunity to make a qualitative and quantitative leap forward in its economic and trade relations,” according to the UN Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean. Infrastructure, innovation, productivity and competitiveness, the commission said, will be the reward for acting in unison to expand ties with China.
As new opportunities emerge, the international order is undergoing a profound adjustment. In the next ten years, China will seek 500 billion U.S dollars of trade and 250 billion U.S. dollars of direct investment in the region. It is the right time for China to work with Latin America and the Caribbean and the right time for development through South-South cooperation.
With closer cooperation between developing countries and China’s commitment to international relations which benefit all, fast development of these developing and emerging economies will invigorate the world and drive the international order in a more just and reasonable direction.
For more: http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/china/2015-01/09/c_133908823.htm

TidBits Today: The Cayman Islands football team
From Digicel Sportsmax
1. Lee Ramoon has the most appearances for the Cayman Islands; he played 200 times for the country. But 70 of them came in official Internationals.

2. Former Fulham striker Barry Hayles is the only player to play for both the Cayman Islands and Jamaica

3. Cayman Islands’ first-ever match was in May 1991, a 2-0 win over the British Virgin Islands

4. Their best finish in a Caribbean Cup is fourth place in 1995 on home soil.

5. Cayman’s biggest ever win was 5-0 over Saint Maarten in March 1994

6. Former Jamaica assistant coach Carl Brown was head coach of the Cayman Islands for two years

7. Cayman’s highest ever FIFA Ranking is 127th

8. Their biggest loss was 8-1 against the USA in November 1993

9. Cayman Islands hosted the inaugural CONCACAF U-15 tournament male and female in 2013 and 2014 respectively.

10. The President of CONCACAF Jeffrey Webb is from the Cayman Islands.
For more: http://www.digicelsportsmax.com/?q=articles/2015/01/11/tidbits-today-cayman-islands-football-team

Cayman Islands government employee issued with judicial warrant
A warrant has been issued for the arrest of Lazarus Yotamu, an employee in the Cayman Islands Public Works Department.
Yotamu pleaded guilty in traffic court in July 2013 to careless driving, driving without insurance, using a vehicle with an expired license and using a vehicle without a certificate of roadworthiness, but failed to appear in Summary Court on Dec. 16, 2014.
How long Yotamu has been paid by the government during this time is unknown.
SOURCE: Cayman Compass: http://www.compasscayman.com/caycompass/2015/01/12/Judicial-warrant-issued-for-gov-t-employee/

Cayman Islands CONCACAF president not interested in being FIFA president
Jeffrey Webb from the Cayman Islands and president of the Confederation of North, Central American and Caribbean Association Football (CONCACAF), has publically stated he is not interested in becoming the next FIFA president.
He reaffirmed his previous position stating categorically he will not challenge Sepp Blatter at the next elections in a few months.

Camana Bay swimming pool in Cayman Islands officially re-opened after renovations
From Camana Bay Aquatic Club
We are happy to announce that the repairs/renovations to our pool have been completed and the pool is now open!

All of CBAC’s scheduled Monday PM practices will be at Camana Bay as well as Masters. And all future workouts will be at CB unless otherwise noted by the staff

For the full CBAC practice calendar for January, please click HERE: https://www.teamunify.com/cicbac/__doc__/January%202015.pdf

If you are interested in a monthly pool membership (will give you access to the pool during non-CBAC hours), contact Jeff Dyson at [email protected].

We thank our entire CBAC family for their patience and perseverance through the renovations and also thank the staff at the Lions Aquatic Centre for accommodating us during this time.

2015 is off to a GREAT start for us so far! Let’s keep it up!

Founded in 2010, CBAC is an aquatic club affiliated with the Cayman Islands Amateur Swimming Association, for swimmers of all ages and abilities which offers top quality coaching and an excellent club atmosphere. We have swimmers from the novice level to the national level who compete locally and internationally.

The Camana Bay Aquatic Club makes it’s home in Camana Bay, Grand Cayman and offers a variety of aquatic related activities to it’s 140+ members. The club is built on the principles of T. E. A. M. Together Everyone Achieves More. At CBAC we believe that through aquatic sports we are building valuable members of our community, providing opportunities for youth and adults to lead a healthy lifestyle and the opportunity to work together towards a common goal.

Cayman Islands Owen Roberts International Airport expansion set to begin
From airport-technology
The Cayman Islands Airports Authority has reportedly signed a deal with US design and cost consulting firm RS&H Consultants to prepare plans for the expansion of a terminal at Owen Roberts International Airport in Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands.
Aimed to more than double the capacity of the building, construction under the $55m project is set to kick off in September, following a tender process, and would take around four years to complete, reports Compass Cayman. The government is also said to commit $15m to the project.
Once complete, it can accommodate close to 2.5 million passengers.
The project will be largely funded through passenger charges imposed by the airport authority.
“People see that something really has to be done, because the airport is bursting at the seams.”
The airport’s runway will also be upgraded as part of another project this year, in a bid to help land the British Airways’ latest Boeing 777 jets at the airport.
Cayman Islands Airports Authority CEO Albert Anderson was cited by the Compass Cayman as saying: “People see that something really has to be done, because the airport is bursting at the seams.”
Plans involve expanding the building outward rather than upward, with the upper floor, including expanded retail and restaurant concessions, which is expected to be an ongoing source of revenue.
Upon the completion of the project, the terminal would feature much larger departure and arrival lounges, in addition to expanded immigration and customs areas and further addition of check-in gates, bringing the overall boarding gates to ten.
For more: http://www.airport-technology.com/news/newsowen-roberts-international-airport-expansion-set-to-begin-4486626