Press Statement by the Minister of Tourism, Environment, Culture and Heritage
Providenciales, Turks and Caicos Islands, January 5, 2018: The Ministry of Tourism, Environment,
Culture, Heritage and Gaming hereby states categorically that Taylor Bay and the adjoining Beach
accesses are for the enjoyment of the public as they have been for generations. These assertions are
supported by legal advice received. We will continue our tenacious and expedited efforts to have this
situation regularized in short order.
The planned Beach Jam for Taylor Bay this Saturday in and of itself would not bring closure to the
matter; it requires firm leadership and, an uncompromising position on the part of TCIG, which my
Ministry is committed to bringing to this situation, to defend the public’s Interest. My Ministry and other
relevant government departments are working closely together on this matter.
To persons who feel like they must attend the event at Taylor Bay this Saturday, should do so in a
dignified and respectable fashion. Similarly, persons anywhere in Our Islands who would seek to prevent
Our People and Our Guests from accessing and enjoying our Beaches would be prosecuted to the fullest
extent of the law.
Turks and Caicos Beaches are known as the Best in the World, bar none, let’s keep it that way.
Apple apologizes for slowdown of older model iPhones
The company is facing a surge of customer backlash and multiple class action lawsuits.
Obama says social media is 'corroding social discourse' in interview with Prince Harry
Former President Barack Obama was interviewed for the first time since leaving office last January by Prince Harry in an interview that aired this morning on BBC’s Radio 4.
The two discussed social media, with Obama warning that caution is necessary.
The former president also said people in a position of power should exercise care when posting messages and said he is concerned that social media is “corroding civil discourse."
Obama did not mention by name President Donald Trump, who uses Twitter frequently.
“All of us in leadership have to find ways in which we can recreate a common space on the Internet," Obama said. "One of the dangers of the Internet is that people can have entirely different realities. They can be cocooned in information that reinforces their current biases."
The wide-ranging interview on a multitude of topics was conducted in September at Harry's Invictus Games but was not released until today, when Harry served as the guest editor of the BBC’s flagship morning program.
Obama reflected on his last days in office and his emotions when he left the presidency. He shared that despite feeling satisfied it was “mixed with all the work that was still undone.”
“Concerns about how the country moves forward but, you know, overall there was serenity there," he added.
Harry focused his show on themes that were central to his charitable work: Empowering youth, providing resources, education and training for service members who have departed the military, and mental health awareness.
Those are all issues the former president and first lady supported during their eight-year tenure at the White House.
"The things that are important to me haven't changed," Obama told Harry. "I still care about making the United States and the world a place where kids get an education, where people who are willing to work hard are able to find a job that pays a living wage, that we are conserving the amazing resources of our planet so that future generations can enjoy the beauty of this place like we did."
Barack Obama and Michelle Obama were early supporters of the Invictus Games, the Paralympic-style competition Harry founded for wounded service members. Michelle Obama headlined the opening ceremony at the 2016 Invictus Games in Orlando with Prince Harry.
The Obamas visited the U.K. for a state visit in 2011 and Prince William, Princess Kate and Harry reciprocated, inviting the president and first lady to Kensington Palace in April 2016. Harry also later welcomed Barack Obama back to Kensington Palace and Barack Obama joined Joe and Jill Biden in attending the 2017 Invictus Games in Toronto.
In October, Harry traveled to Chicago, the Obamas' hometown, to attend the Inaugural Summit of the Obama Foundation. He also joined Michelle Obama in surprising a group of students at a high school on Chicago's South Side.
Harry was asked on BBC’s Radio 4 about having the tables turned and being the interviewer.
"I haven't done that many interviews but it was quite fun," he said. "Especially interviewing President Obama, despite the fact he wanted to interview me.”
Harry also conceded that the process was still a bit nerve-wracking. “You're excited about this, I'm nervous about this, that's what's quite funny," Harry said. Obama replied, "I'll interview you if you want."
"No. No. Let's keep it this way," Harry said.
The interview concluded with a lightning round of Harry asking a number of questions about Obama’s personal life, including his likes and dislikes and even a joke about "Suits," the TV show in which Harry's fiance, Meghan Markle, used to star. Harry also tried to extract from the former president details like whether he wears boxers or briefs and if he could compare Buckingham Palace to the White House.
The fifth-in-line to the throne shared that it was much harder than it looked even though he has done hundreds of interviews in his life.
"It's been a big learning curve but also these are incredibly important topics we all need to think about and need to be discussed," he said.
Harry also treated listeners to a poignant interview with his father, Prince Charles, about the threat and “untold horrors" of climate change.
Prince Charles told his son, "What I’ve been trying to do all these years is to make sure that, if I can possibly and I’m not sure if I can, is to ensure that you and your children, my grandchildren, also everyone else’s grandchildren, have a world fit to live in that provides them with opportunity."
Harry replied to his dad that he feels "optimistic about the future."
"Coming from a younger generation it is incredibly exciting and I feel optimistic about the future because now is a real test for, a real test for humanity to be able to swing that pendulum and say right in order for us to make our mark on this planet," Harry said.
Prince Charles thanked his son, saying, “Well darling boy it makes me very proud to think that you understand."
Fatal NYC fire started by 3-year-old playing with stove, official says
New York (CNN)A 3-year-old boy's screams alerted his mother that a fire had erupted in their first-floor apartment in the Bronx on Thursday night. The boy had been playing with the burners on the kitchen stove, New York fire officials said Friday.
When the mother fled the burning apartment with the boy and his 2-year-old sibling, she made a fatal mistake -- she left the apartment door open.
The tragic result was the deaths of at least 12 people, including at least four children, the New York Police Department said.
It was the deadliest fire in New York City in more than 25 years.
The apartment's stairway acted "like a chimney" as the fire burst from the apartment, feeding the flames and allowing them to spread throughout the building, FDNY Commissioner Daniel Nigro said Friday.
The boy in the first-floor apartment had a history of playing with the stove burners, Nigro said. The fire commissioner reminded all New Yorkers of his department's frequent messages emphasizing the crucial step residents must take in the event of a fire.
"Close the door, close the door, close the door," Nigro said.
The fire commissioner said he's unsure whether all the smoke detectors were working in the building.
Records from a city housing agency show one of the apartments on the building's first floor reported defective carbon monoxide and smoke detectors months ago. It's unclear whether those issues were resolved.
Still, Nigro said there was nothing structural about the building that contributed to the fire. The building had a "relatively low history of repair violations," a spokesperson for New York City Housing Preservation and Development said.
Seven civilians and seven firefighters were injured in the fire, according to the fire department. Four civilians were still being treated at hospitals Friday afternoon, with injuries ranging from serious to critical.
Public Forecast for 12 PM 29th December 2017
THIS IS THE PUBLIC FORECAST FOR 12:00 PM THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT FRIDAY 29TH DECEMBER 2017.
GENERAL SITUATION: A SURFACE TO LOW LEVEL TROUGH WILL LINGER ACROSS THE CENTRAL AND SOUTHEAST BAHAMAS TODAY…MEANWHILE DEVELOPING LOW PRESSURE NORTH OF THE AREA WILL SHIFT NORTHEASTWARDS EVENTUALLY DRAGGING A COLD FRONT ACROSS THE NORTHWEST BAHAMAS THROUGH TONIGHT.
AREA: NORTHWEST BAHAMAS
WEATHER: PARTLY SUNNY AND WARM THIS AFTERNOON WITH THE CHANCE OF A FEW ISOLATED SHOWERS…BECOMING VARIABLY CLOUDY TONIGHT WITH A FEW SHOWERS POSSIBLE.
WINDS: NORTHWEST TO NORTH AT 10 TO 15 KNOTS.
SEAS: 2 TO 4 FEET OVER THE OCEAN.
AREA: CENTRAL AND SOUTHEAST BAHAMAS.
WEATHER: VARIABLY CLOUDY WITH THE CHANCE OF A FEW BRIEF SHOWERS THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT.
WINDS: NORTHEAST TO EAST AT 10 TO 15 KNOTS.
SEAS: 2 TO 4 FEET OVER THE OCEAN.
DAYTIME HIGH TEMPERATURE 82°F 28°C
OVERNITE LOW TEMPERATURE 66°F 19°C
SUNRISE: 6:54AM SAT
SUNSET: 5:30PM
MOONRISE: 2:36PM
MOONSET: 3:59AM SAT
HIGH TIDE: 4:10PM & 4:52AM SAT
LOW TIDE: 10:25PM & 11:19AM SAT
WEATHER OUTLOOK: 11:00 AM (FOR TOMORROW)…A WEAKENED FRONTAL BOUNDARY WILL STALL ACROSS THE NORTHWEST BAHAMAS AND DISSIPATE THROUGH SATURDAY.
NEW YEAR MESSAGE FROM HUGH RILEY SECRETARY GENERAL CARIBBEAN TOURISM ORGANIZATION
Bridgetown, Barbados (28 Dec 2017) - This has been a challenging year for Caribbean tourism. While the first half of the year saw exciting growth in both tourism infrastructure and tourist arrivals over the previous year, in September we were hit hard by a series of unusual hurricanes that not only destroyed property, but also took the lives of many of our citizens. We must never forget the souls we lost along the way.
Physically, we will recover. Our Caribbean people are a resilient population. We will put the bricks and mortar back together and the hotels and vegetation will rise again and shine in the brilliant sunlight.
We take this time, a season of celebration and joy and the promise of a new beginning, to both reflect on the preceding year and look forward to tomorrow. And we will take the time to give thanks.
Travellers coming to the countries that were impacted by the storms will now see various stages of the rebuild/recover effort. Some are already fully up to speed and ready for the winter; others, only partially so. Our affected islands respect the safety and security of guests and staff and are therefore being frank and open about their state of readiness.
As tourism is the main economic driver for most of the Caribbean, we place enormous emphasis on delivering value and a superb visitor experience. In the hurricane-affected islands guests in 2018 and beyond will expect to see a product that is rebuilt stronger, better and even more attractive than before. That's the plan, however long it takes to deliver.
We are thankful that the vast majority of the Caribbean never got touched by the hurricanes, so those islands have continued to welcome visitors every day. For them it's business as usual. We are grateful to the travel professionals, the many visitors and our citizens themselves who continue to share images of the Caribbean today. Those pictures tell a thousand realities.
We want to use this time to thank our member countries that were quick to come to the aid of others not so fortunate. We want to thank our partners, the Caribbean Hotel & Tourism Association, the airlines, cruise lines and the hotels across the region that have worked and are still working to bring the Caribbean back to normal operations. We want to thank our marketing and sales partners, the tour operators, wholesalers and travel agents from around the world who have stood by the region and continue to promote and sell our destinations. And we want to thank the media that have, for the most part, painted a proper picture of our region that is clearly open for business. Through it all, we are also eternally grateful to our visitors and to the Caribbean Diaspora who stand shoulder to shoulder with our region in times of need.
Even as we prepare to greet a New Year let us take a moment to look back on a few of the successes of 2017.
Recently we embarked on a strategy to substantially enhance the Caribbean's engagement in Canada, to develop business in non-traditional areas and work closely with our members' representatives for maximum impact. New travel agent training and certification, increased use of targeted social media, enhanced deployment of the CTO's data analysis tools, and more focused engagement with the Caribbean Diaspora were all components of the 2017 strategy for Canada. The Canadian market was a strong performer for most of 2017, with arrivals up by 6.4 percent. We can now look forward to more expansion of that market in 2018.
We also continued to focus on our two primary markets, the United States and Europe, with the UK, in particular, taking a central role. These markets were more robust in 2017 and we trust this will continue in 2018.
We realized too, that intra-Caribbean tourism, which has also been on the rise, would need our continuous attention, especially under the current circumstances where the task of educating the travelling public and removing the barriers to intra-Caribbean travel will continue to be a challenge.
At the start of the year we declared 2017 the Year of Adventure in the Caribbean and we capitalized on this in multiple promotions with member countries and industry partners. The Caribbean Year of Adventure linked directly with the United Nations Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development and allowed us to pair adventure with sustainability.
The year culminated with the World Tourism Organization holding its Global Conference on Jobs and Inclusive Growth, in Jamaica, followed by the CTO's partnership with the Caribbean Development Bank to host the Climate Smart Sustainable Tourism Forum in St. Kitts.
For the New Year the CTO has declared 2018 The Year of Rejuvenation in the Caribbean. With wellness and rejuvenation being important aspects of the Caribbean tourism product, we are encouraging our member countries and private sector partners to plan and organise events and activities around that theme.
For travellers who focus on renewing body and spirit, the options are virtually endless; from beachfront workouts and yoga retreats, to wellness resorts and spa treatments, the notion of being rejuvenated in the Caribbean is one more reason to let us pamper you in 2018.
The 2018 Caribbean Year of Rejuvenation will be promoted through social media and traditional media channels and will create opportunities for locals, travellers and holiday/vacation planners to share their ideas on how to capture the Caribbean's huge capacity for wellness and rejuvenation. It will be a time of rebirth for us and for those who come to share the joy of a Caribbean vacation experience.
We look forward to 2018 with optimism and excitement.
On behalf of our CTO Chairman, The Hon. Dionisio D'Aguilar, Bahamas Minister of Tourism, the CTO Council of Ministers and Commissioners of Tourism, the Board of Directors, Members and Staff of the CTO, I thank you for your continued support of our region, and I wish you and yours a safe, peaceful and prosperous New Year.
Illegal Sloop Landing
During the evening of December 28, 2017, the Marine Branch of the Royal Turks and Caicos Islands Police Force ferried an illegal sloop into Ship Yard Providenciales. The forty five feet vessel was intercepted after authorities received a call from a citizen who spotted the vessel.
The vessel had on board forty seven (47) males and seven (7) females.
The repatriation process commenced at 9 am today and will continue until all persons have left the territory. This is the thirteenth (13) vessel that has arrived within the Islands with illegal immigrants for the year 2017 and takes the number of persons repatriated for the year to nearly 1400.
The Enforcement agencies of the Turks and Caicos Islands are asking that anyone with information concerning planned arrival of other sloops to contact the Police anonymously on 911 or Crime Stoppers anonymously on 1-800-8477.
Tips can also be submitted anonymously in English, French or Spanish on either ">www.crimestoppers.tc or on Facebook as a fan of Crime Stoppers Turks & Caicos. Crime Stoppers tips are received in the USA.
Digicel TCI Spreads Holiday Cheer to S.N.A.P. Center
Providenciales, Turks & Caicos- In the midst
of preparing for one of the busiest seasons of the year, the Digicel team shifted
their focus towards spending meaningful moments and spreading holiday cheer
with the students from the Special Needs Association of Providenciales (S.N.A.P)
Center.
As a community-centered organization company, and one that believes in
empowering the people of the Turks & Caicos Islands, the Digicel team was thrilled
to be a part of the Christmas experience this year for these students. All sixteen
kids at the S.N.A.P. center were given gifts from Digicel for Christmas, including
remote control monster trucks, Moana and Dora dolls, fragrance gift sets and much
more.
Commenting on the success of the outreach, Regional CEO for Digicel, Sinead O
Marcaigh, said, “We all had a great time bringing the joy of Christmas to our little
friends here. At this special time of year, it is even more important for us to let them
know that we still care.”
The initiative is very dear to Marcaigh who shared, as “I’ve been working with
children with special needs for over 30 years. It was great to spend time with these
children who are often forgotten. Their smiles are genuine and they long to have a
normal life like anyone else. So I was more than glad to join the team and be part
of making their Christmas a bit brighter.”
In a hearty show of gratitude, the students treated the Digicel team to a few songs,
showing off their musical prowess, followed by lots of hugs. Their teachers
received treats as a token of appreciation for their tireless work and dedication in
ensuring that the students receive the best possible education and early
stimulation.
It's a Girl! - The Christmas Day Baby
Turks and Caicos Islands Hospital wishes to congratulate a couple on receiving the best present they could have possibly imagined on Christmas Day - a bouncing baby girl weighing 7 pounds, 9 ounces.
Destin Naye Gaia Buckingham was born at 4:48pm on December 25th, 2017 at Cheshire Hall Medical Centre on Providenciales to parents Yariceincy De La Cruz and David Buckingham.
The jovial parents were presented with a gift bath tub stuffed with infant-care items such as diapers, clothes, bibs, baby wipes, and more, courtesy of TCI Hospital.
Congratulations to the Buckingham family! We wish to express a huge thank you to all the staff in the delivery suite and maternity unit.
Plane Crash in Five Cays
At about 5:33pm on Saturday 23rd December 2017 a report was received of an aircraft crash near to the Smithco Petrol Station in Industrial Drive Providenciales. Upon the arrival of the emergency services (Royal Turks and Caicos Islands Police Force, Fire Service and Emergency Medical Services) it was confirmed that a light aircraft had crashed at that location. As a result of the crash, the two persons on board suffered fatal injuries.
The TCI CAA Air Crash Manager attended the location and is working with Officers from the RT&CIPF to secure the scene and commence the investigation. The UK Aircraft Accident Investigation Board has been notified of the crash.
Acting Commissioner of Police Trevor Botting said: "I can confirm that a light aircraft crashed this afternoon, soon after 5:30pm near to the Smithco Petrol Station in Industrial Drive after taking off from Providenciales Airport. Tragically, the two persons on board have been killed in the crash. Work is underway to identify the next of kin of those who have died, so no further details will be released at this time. My thoughts and those of my officers, are with the families of those involved. An investigation into the circumstances of this tragic incident are underway and I would ask people not to speculate as to the cause. I am aware that footage of the crashed aircraft is being circulated and I would ask that persons refrain from sharing images and video but instead make them available to the Police as part of the investigation.
I wish also to pay tribute to all of the members of the emergency services who attended the incident. The scene of the crash was challenging and upsetting but all the services worked together to do all they could for those on board the aircraft. Incidents such as this are a stark reminder of the difficult and challenging work that the emergency services undertake in the service of the communities on the Turks and Caicos Islands."