iNews Briefs – updated
4.6 magnitude earthquake 149 km from George Town, Cayman Islands
From Earthquake Track
UTC time: Thursday, October 16, 2014 16:45 PM
Your time: Thursday, October 16 2014 11:45 AM
No tsunami statement issued
Magnitude Type: mb
USGS page: M 4.6 – 147km SSW of George Town, Cayman Islands
USGS status: Reviewed by a seismologist
Reports from the public: 0 people
Drug Arrests on Cayman Brac
From RCIPS Oct 17, 2014 at 10:09 AM
Yesterday (16) at about 3pm following on from information received by police of illegal drug dealing in the area of Watering Place, Cayman Brac, a response team comprising of Police/Special Constabulary and Customs Dept stopped a white Hyundai motor vehicle in the Creek Road area, a search of the vehicle revealed what appeared to be vegetable matter resembling Ganja.
Subsequently the driver a 37 year old male and passenger a 23 year old male, non-residents of Cayman Brac were arrested on Suspicion of Possession of a Controlled Drug With Intent to Supply/Possession of a Controlled Drug and Consumption of a Controlled Drug.
Both males, drugs and vehicle were taken to Brac Police Station. They were later interviewed and bailed to return to Brac Police Station at a later date.
Chief Inspector Owens said, “Every now and again we have some people coming to the Sister Islands who think they can commit crime here without repercussions, whether it be breaking into people’s property or being involved in illegal drugs. I have 1500 plus eyes and ears on the Sister Islands who care for these islands and want to keep them safe for our residents and people who want to come here to enjoy themselves. So the message is we are watching you, with the support of the community and the excellent co-operation of our partner agencies we will deal robustly with any illegal activities, which has been shown by successful operations and arrests in the last year”.
Cayman Islands police seize drugs after routine road block
From RCIPS
On Sunday 12th October 2014 about 12:40am, officers of the [Royal Cayman Islands Police Service] George Town Police Station conducted a roadblock at the Sound Way and Sparky Drive intersection. During the course of the roadblock, a 31 year old male from the district of George Town was searched and found to be in possession of several packets of white substances suspected to be cocaine.
A further search of his vehicle by the officers revealed several jars of vegetable matter resembling ganja; he was arrested on suspicion of possession of controlled drugs and possession with intent to supply controlled drugs.
RCIPS further states under the Traffic law 2011, constables are authorize to stop vehicles and erect road blocks or barriers. Roadblocks are common place in the Cayman Islands and often serve as sobriety check points for general road safety and enforcement of the traffic law.
Cayman Islands National Trust wants to own 10% of Cayman’s land mass
The Cayman Islands National Trust owns at present 3,300 acres of dry forest and mangrove wetlands that are home to endemic birds, orchids, trees and reptiles.
However, that is far short of the Trust’s preservation mandate of owning 10% of Cayman’s land mass.
The Trust doesn’t build on any of this land nor develops it and they are buying land strictly for its environmental value. They have said this value is worth far more than the commercial valuation of the land they own that is just over $11M.
Why Himalayan glaciers are expanding instead of shrinking
From The Siasat Daily
Scientists’ observations in the Karakoram region have revealed that the glaciers there were stable, and snowfall is increasing instead of decreasing.
The researchers found that while precipitation is increasing across the Himalayas, most of this moisture drops in the summer – except in Karakoram, where snow dominates the scene, Discovery News reported.
Study researcher Sarah Kapnick, a postdoctoral researcher in atmospheric and ocean sciences at Princeton University, gave reasoning for why you can have increased snowfall in a region and have increased glaciers or stable glaciers in a warming world.
She and her colleagues collected data on recent precipitation and temperatures from the Pakistan Meteorological Department and other sources, including satellite data. They combined this information with climate models to track changes in three regions of the Himalayas between 1861 and 2100: the Karakoram; the central Himalayas; and the southeast Himalayas which included part of the Tibetan Plateau.
The researchers found that a new model that simulates climate down to an area of 965 square miles (2,500 square kilometers) was able to match the observed temperature and precipitation cycles seen in the Karakoram. A model used by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) to simulate what will happen if the world continues to emit greenhouse gases at current rates was unable to capture these seasonal cycles, Kapnick said.
The reason, she said, was that the IPCC and other climate models are lower-resolution, capturing climate change over areas no finer than about 17,027 square miles (44,100 square km). The coarser resolution “smoothes out” variations in elevation that works fine for the central Himalayas and southeast Himalayas. However, the Karakoram region has more elevation variability than the other two regions.
Ultimately, the result is that the IPCC and other models overestimate the amount of warmth in this region, Kapnick said.
For more: http://www.siasat.com/english/news/why-himalayan-glaciers-are-expanding-instead-shrinking
Cayman Airways received help from police helicopter
Further to iNews Cayman story published October 14 2014 in iNews Briefs “Landing gear faulty indicator causes emergency on Cayman Airways flight” where we reported “The flight captain, Sean Bent, delayed the landing until he received confirmation from the ground crew the position of the gear was in place” we have learnt the Royal Cayman Islands Service (RCIPS) helicopter played an important part in this.
Steve Fitzgerald, RCIPS Air Operations Commander, said, “We [police helicopter] rendezvoused with the aircraft about four miles off the coast, south of the island, and we carried out a visual inspection with our cameras whether to see if the landing gear was down and the locking bars in place. It was certainly safer and more effective for us to do it with our cameras than people with binoculars on the ground trying to work out whether the undercarriage was down and locked.”
After the OK was given the Cayman airways jet landed safely.
British archaeologists unearth remnants of Celtic chariot
From The Siasat Daily
Archaeologists of the University of Leicester discovered some bronze parts of an ancient chariot on a hill in the Midlands, the university said Tuesday.
University of Leicester said a team from the university’s School of Archaeology and Ancient History unearthed some bronze remains from a Celtic chariot, which could date back to the second or third century BC, at Burrough Hill, a well known Iron Age hill fort in Leicestershire.
It said a group of four students of the school first discovered a piece of bronze in the ground before uncovering a concentration of further parts nearby, Xinhua reported. After cleaning, the metalwork showed some decorated patterns clearly.
“Realising that I was actually uncovering a hoard that was carefully placed there hundreds of years ago made it the find of a lifetime. Looking at the objects now that they have been cleaned makes me even more proud, and I can’t wait for them to go on display,” said Nora Battermann, one of the students who found the pieces.
Archaeologists believe that the more than 2,200-year-old chariot belonged to a high status person, maybe a noble or warrior.
“This is the most remarkable discovery of material we made at Burrough Hill in the five years we worked on the site. This is a very rare discovery, and a strong sign of the prestige of the site… I have been excavating for 25 years and I have never found one of these pieces — let alone a whole set. It is a once-in-a-career discovery,” said Jeremy Taylor, lecturer at the school and also the co-director of the Burrough Hill field project.
Further analysis will be conducted for those parts before a temporary display in Leicestershire Oct 18-Dec 13. The official public display will open in due course.
For more: http://www.siasat.com/english/news/british-archaeologists-unearth-remnants-celtic-chariot
Alleged burglar of safe appears in Cayman Islands court
Brandon Reno Liberal appeared in the Cayman Islands Summary Court via video link, accused with others unknown, of entering the Treasure Island resort on West Bay Road, Grand Cayman, on Sunday, June 6, 2012, as a trespasser and stealing a safe containing in excess of $60,000 in both U.S. and Cayman currency.
Liberal elected to stand trial in the Grand Court.
Chief Magistrate Nova Hall set Friday, Oct. 31st as the mention date for his Grand Court appearance.
Long lost parrot returns to his owner speaking a different language
By Laura Vitto From Mashable
Nigel the English-speaking African grey parrot vanished from his owner’s home four years ago, making a return fairly unlikely.
So when Darren Chick received a knock on his door in Torrance, California, last week, a reunion with his long lost parrot was the last thing he expected. Nigel’s whereabouts for the past four years remains unknown, but he returned with a new marketable skill: speaking Spanish.
Teresa Micco, a local veterinarian in Torrance, facilitated the reunion. Her efforts to find her own lost parrot led her to the owners of a local dog spa, reported The Daily Breeze. The owners of the dog spa contacted Micco when they realized that ads for her lost parrot matched the description of a bird found at their home. Though Micco was saddened to learn that the parrot wasn’t in fact hers, she set out to help find its rightful owner after noticing a small microchip embedded in the bird’s skin.
Though the microchip was never registered, Micco was able to trace the records of paper sales back to a local pet store, which pointed her to Chick. Luckily, Chick was still living at the same address in Torrance that he had lived at when he purchased Nigel.
“So I showed up at his house and knocked on the door,” Micco said. “I introduced myself and said, ‘Have you lost a bird?’”
Chick was initially hesitant, but the reunion ultimately brought tears to his eyes. Nigel bit Chick when he first attempted to pick him up.
“He’s doing perfect,” Chick said of Nigel. “It’s really weird, I knew it was him from minute I saw him.”
Denise Gillen, who worked as a senior bird keeper at the San Diego Zoo for 18 years, told Mashable that African grey parrots are some of the animal kingdom’s most intelligent birds. She cited a study that shows these birds can reason at the level of a 3-year-old human.
Gillen suggests that it’s likely that Nigel came to live with Spanish-speaking people during his mysterious four-year absence, and was quickly able to pick up on phrases. Gillen also cited her own experience as a former owner of an African grey parrot, sharing that her bird could pick up words and tunes within minutes; in fact, it could even be trained to correct pronunciation. With this in mind, she said, it seems likely that Nigel will be able to relearn English with little trouble. For more: http://mashable.com/2014/10/14/spanish-speaking-parrot/
Cayman Islands swim coach to move to US University
Chris Dart, Camana Bay Aquatic Club (CBAC) Assistant Coach, has announced he is leaving to take up a position as an assistant coach at Brown University, USA, an NCAA Division 1 programme.
Dart said on CITN/Cayman27 on Wednesday (15), “I’ve always dreamed of being a college swimming coach,” Dart said. “And I got the opportunity to work with my former college coach and my mentor, Chris Ip. So it was really an opportunity I couldn’t pass up.”
CBAC have now to plan how to deal with replacing him.
Long neglected, disabled make gains in Caribbean
By David Mcfadden Associated Press From UT San Diego
KINGSTON, Jamaica (AP) — Claudia Gordon abruptly went deaf as a child in rural Jamaica, and lost much more than her hearing as a result.
She was pulled out of school and kept at home to perform chores. Neighbors shunned, and sometimes mocked her. Some of the people who took care of her periodically hauled her off to rituals where soothsayers would attempt to cure the medical condition, still mysterious to this day, that caused her deafness.
“I was confused by my sudden hearing loss and filled with a sense of hopelessness from being ostracized for it. Why can’t I go to school? Why am I not being taken along with the other kids in my family during outings? Why do people stare? Why do they laugh at me?” Gordon, now a prominent lawyer and disability rights advocate in Washington, recalls of those traumatic days in the early 1980s.
Her experience was similar to that of many physically and mentally disabled people in the Caribbean, where resources and basic protections for the disabled are often scarce. But things appear to be gradually improving after years of struggle.
Jamaica last week passed a watershed law that will, among other things, prohibit workplace discrimination and create a special tribunal to rule on complaints made by disabled citizens. The adoption of the law follows similar actions taken in Bahamas and Guyana. Sign language interpreters are seen more often on Caribbean TV stations and schools are becoming more inclusive of students with disabilities.
For more: http://www.utsandiego.com/news/2014/oct/15/long-neglected-disabled-make-gains-in-caribbean/
Royal Caribbean fined over €600,000 for overworking crew
From Vessel Finder
The Netherlands has fined Royal Caribbean for violating labour rules and regulations, the local newspaper The NL Times says.
The cruise company has to pay over €600,000 ($760,000) for the overworking of the Oasis of the Seas crew while the world’s largest cruise ship was undergoing a drydock in Rotterdam. Furthermore, the crew members lacked proper residence papers.
“The inspectorate of Social Affairs and Labor had hinted to Royal Caribbean Cruises in advance already that when its ship would be here it would have to adhere to Dutch rules and legislation,” the newspaper says.
Initially, the cruise ship was boarded by ten inspectors, but the violations found imposed a second visit by 45 inspectors. The inspection showed that at least 48 crew members (from South America and the Philippines) lacked proper Dutch work permits and were also apparently overworked with excessive hours. According to a Dutch law firm, the number of crew members without work permissions reaches 85.
A fine of 12,000 euros per violation can be accessed and the precise amount will be determined after the end of the investigation.
Yesterday, the largest in the world cruise ship made its maiden call in the UK. Oasis of the Seas arrived in Southampton for the very first time welcomed by a crowd of hundreds.
For more: http://www.vesselfinder.com/news/2419-Royal-Caribbean-fined-over-600000-for-overworking-crew
FAO Caribbean head highlights importance of policy in revitalizing regional agriculture
From Caribbean News Now
PARAMARIBO, Suriname — The critical role of policy development and implementation in the process of revitalizing agriculture sectors in the region was highlighted in a workshop on governance and public policy held last week at the Caribbean Week of Agriculture 2014 in Paramaribo, Suriname.
In a comprehensive presentation to workshop delegates, Dr Deep Ford, subregional coordinator for the Caribbean for the Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO), led the dialogue calling for differentiated public policy, improved governance and increased public and private sector investment synergies.
In highlighting the need for agricultural revitalization, he reinforced the role that a dynamic and productive agriculture sector can play in addressing some of the challenges facing countries of the region, including food security, incidence of poverty and the increasing impacts of climate change.
“Coherent and inclusive policy frameworks, including policy instruments, will be essential for agriculture to be a key economic growth driver which will enable sustainable food and nutrition security at the regional and country level,” Ford said.
He cited the Caribbean Community Strategic Plan 2015 – 2019, which was prepared through a process of wide consultation and was recently adopted at the CARICOM heads of government meeting in July 2014. This document identified agriculture as a key economic growth driver. He indicated that this document called for targeted time-bound interventions to stimulate domestic food production and inputs.
Ford suggested that priority areas for policy development may include establishing regional indicators for targeted reduction of the food import bill, targeting select commodities for development based on their potential competitiveness, and advancing exports by investment in agri-food initiatives. A review of regional and national policies indicate that while policy is well developed, there is a clear need to develop differentiated approaches given the diverse nature of the farmer base.
Brawl gets Cayman Islands man 2 years in jail
Antascio Rankine (20) was given a 2 years jail sentence after a violent attack with a machete and a knife on two men during a brawl that got out of hand in an East End family yard on Grand Cayman in February 2013.
During the dispute in the yard in Eastland Drive Rankine attacked one man with a machete causing him injuries to his head and stabbed his uncle in the arm with a knife.
The altercation was over cigarettes and insults and alcoholic drinking was also involved.
In passing sentence the judge said, “This violent behavior in the context of drink is bad enough but the use of a machete made things even worse. Because this was a family dispute made it no better as family members need to be protected by the courts from violence like this. Not content with using a machete you also used a knife…It is wholly unacceptable and lucky the injuries are not much worse. You could’ve killed somebody.”
Alongside Rankine in the dock was Roland Welcome who was one of several other men allegedly involved in the major brawl but the only other person chatged.
Welcome had smashed up a truck belonging to one of the men at the yard that night involved in the dispute using a large plank of wood. His arm had also been broken during the melee.
Welcome received a further 3 months to his existing sentence of 12 months over possession of a BB gun.
Guyana Theatre Arts School providing leadership in drama in Caribbean
From Stabroek News
-mentors rolling out countrywide in January-
Director of Studies at National School of Drama and Theatre Arts, [Guyana] Al Creighton said the National Drama Festival is in a unique position of leadership in drama in the Caribbean, even as it continues to expand countrywide.
Creighton said that while the Link Show is an important aspect that represents that position of leadership, the national festival itself is unique because of its structure and developmental component which has seen a surge of new plays that contributes to the continued life of drama in Guyana.
The Ministry of Culture opened the fourth National Drama Festival at the National Cultural Centre on Sunday.
Commodore Roderick Bowe to deliver keynote at Maritime Security 2014 Caribbean
By NEAK Media From The Bahamas Weekly
On October 15, 2014, Homeland Security Outlook (HSO) announced that Commodore Roderick Bowe, Commander of the Royal Bahamas Defence Force, will provide the opening keynote address of the Maritime Security 2014 Caribbean program. The two-day conference will be held on October 29th and 30th, 2014 in the Independence Ballroom of the Meliá Nassau Beach, located at 4914 West Bay Street in Nassau, the Bahamas.
Commodore Bowe joins an already impressive program with speakers from across the Bahamas, United States, and Caribbean. Together, the speakers will be addressing topics critical to the vitality and security of Caribbean waters such as cruise vessel and boating/marina safety and security, responding to maritime natural and manmade disasters, international partnerships and information sharing, law enforcement tactical training, and maritime commerce.
The Maritime Security 2014 Caribbean conference will be attended by maritime security stakeholders representing private companies, port authorities, law enforcement and military agencies, and the recreational boating/tourism industry. Whilst most participants are local to Nassau, others will fly to the conference from places as far away as California and Canada to partake in the event, making the conference a true international exchange of ideas and collaboration.
Conference registration for Maritime Security 2014 Caribbean is open to the public, particularly those involved with security, tourism, and government agencies. Complete agenda, venue, and registration information is available at http://www.maritimesecuritycaribbean.com
Homeland Security Outlook is a division of Neak Media. Since its 2009 founding by Sareth Neak, HSO is dedicated to building collaboration and education for the homeland security community. HSO’s passion for national security coupled with its vast network of homeland security professionals throughout the U.S.and Caribbean allows it to provide effective education, collaboration and marketing platforms on the web, in print and in person.
General Discussion Second Chamber about education quality in Caribbean Netherlands
The education quality in the Caribbean Netherlands was the main topic of the so-called “Algemeen Overleg” (General Discussion) on October 15th, between the Permanent Committee of Kingdom Affairs and State Secretary Sander Dekker (OCW) in the Second Chamber. The State Secretary was supported for this discussion by the Project Director Caribbean Netherlands, the director of the Directorate for Secondary education and a delegation from RCN/OCW.
A positive point that emerged from this discussion was the upward tendency of the education quality in Caribbean Netherlands Primary Education. During their yearly quality assessment last week, the Inspectorate of Education announced that the Golden Rock school for Primary education on Sint Eustatius had reached the basic quality. The Inspectorate has repeatedly ascertained that education staff on the islands are working hard on the realization of the quality improvements points that were laid down by the schools and OCW in the Education Agenda Caribbean Netherlands, in March 2011.
Other topics discussed, apart from the education quality, were the governing power of the schools, education funding, the role and impact of language in education and education care. The governing power at the schools for Secondary education was a matter of great concern for the members of the Chamber. The elaborate discussion of this topic included a review of possibilities for intervention in case of persisting failure to improve governmental power at these schools.
