999,999th Porsche 911 ever made sold in Canada
The one millionth Porsche 911 ever manufactured won't be coming to Canada as part of its world tour, but the 999,999th 911 was sold here.
The Guards Red 911 Targa 4 GTS that came down the automaker's Zuffenhausen facility production line — right before the millionth car — was delivered to Pfaff Porsche in Vaughn, Ont., just north of Toronto, the dealership said on its website.
Owner Rob Tenuta received the car in a special ceremony, during which Porsche Cars Canada CEO Alexander Pollich joined salesperson Alex Krigos to complete the transaction.
Tenuta received some special gifts to accompany his special car, including a Porsche desk pylon anodized black like his 911 Targa 4 GTS’s roll bar, which is traditional silver, and a special certificate from Porsche.
The one millionth Porsche 911 rolled off the line May 11. Porsche outfitted the Carrera S in “Irish Green,” to mark the occasion. It also gave it a custom interior, a mahogany rim on the steering wheel and a couple nods to the one million number, including a badge on the dash.
Porsche will not be selling the 911, however. Instead, it will embark on a worldwide tour before being sent to the Porsche Museum.
Porsche Cars Canada spokesperson Patrick Saint-Pierre confirmed to Automotive News Canada the historic car won’t be making its way to Canada as part of the tour.
Source-ANC (Automotive News Canada)
IDB launches 'Orange Economy' book on the Caribbean
Highlighting the contributions of creative talent to social and economic progress, the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) has launched the e-book, “Orange Economy: Innovations you may not know were from Latin America and the Caribbean”.
The IDB said it uses the term “orange economy” to describe the cultural and creative industries, which include activities such as architecture, audiovisual arts, digital services, fashion, graphic and industrial design, handcrafts, music and software.
In 2015, the IDB said it generated more than US$124 billion in revenue and provided jobs to more than 1.9 million people in the region.
The e-book, which can showcases 50 outstanding initiatives in the cultural and creative industries from 12 countries in Latin America and the Caribbean.
“The case studies underscore how creativity works as an engine for innovation and a tool to help countries diversify their output and engage in the knowledge-based economy,” the IDB said.
“Among the selected startups, we highlighted those that succeeded in bridging the analog and the digital realms, a key convergence for reinventing the entrepreneurship ecosystem and our cities, drawing from what communities need, their surrounding environment and leveraging our cultural heritage,” said IDB lead specialist Alejandra Luzardo, one of the authors.
The e-book includes examples exhibited in different editions of “Demand Solutions: Ideas for Improving Lives,” the IDB’s flagship initiative on creativity, innovation and entrepreneurship.
Despacito" Scores 10th week at #1, Ed Sheeran ties Top 5 record
There's no stopping "Despacito." The Luis Fonsi/Daddy Yankee/Justin Bieber collabo has just hit its 10th week at #1 on the Billboard Hot 100. It's just the 35th song ever to rack up at least 10 weeks at the top in the entire history of the chart, which dates back to 1958.
"Despacito" is the longest-running #1 since Ed Sheeran's "Shape of You," which spent 12 weeks at #1 earlier this year. And speaking of that song, it's just tied the record for the most weeks in the top 5: 27. The Chainsmokers just set that record recently with "Closer;" now Ed has matched it.
But "Despacito" needs to hang on for seven more weeks if it hopes to set the all-time record for most weeks at #1. The current record is held by Mariah Carey and Boyz II Men's "One Sweet Day." That one topped the chart for 16 weeks from 1995 to 1996.
Finally, Shawn Mendes' latest hit "There's Nothing Holdin' Me Back" rises to #8, giving the Canadian singer his third top 10 on the Billboard Hot 100, following "Stitches" and "Treat You Better."
Source-ABC
Severe weather alert issued for Barbados
A severe weather alert has been issued for Barbados, as the Barbados Meteorological Service continues to monitor the progress of two tropical waves to the south-east of the island.
The statement, issued at midday on Monday, indicated that the wave closest to the island had an area of low pressure located about 700 miles east south-east of the Windward Islands, and was moving west to west-northwest at about 15 mph/24 km/h.
The associated shower and thunderstorm activity continues to show some signs of organisation, but the system appears to lack a well-defined centre at this time.
However, the statement cautioned that environmental conditions were marginally conducive for some slow development before the system reached the Lesser Antilles.
“Regardless of development, pockets of moderate to heavy showers, periods of rain, thunderstorms and occasional gusty winds are likely to spread across the island late Tuesday into Wednesday,” the statement read.
It added that rainfall accumulations of one to two inches (25 to 50 mm) were possible along the path of the system, and swells of 2.5 to 3.0 metres (8 to 10 feet) were also likely.
The Meteorological Service says an Air Force Reserve reconnaissance aircraft was scheduled to investigate the first wave if necessary.
Source-CMC
Trump Again Defends Son's Meeting with Russian Lawyer
President Donald Trump is continuing to defend his eldest son's meeting last year with a Russian lawyer he expected was going to hand him incriminating material about Trump's election challenger, Democrat Hillary Clinton.
"Most politicians would have gone to a meeting like the one Don jr attended in order to get info on an opponent. That's politics!" Trump said Monday on his Twitter account.
Trump has tried several times now to defuse the controversy over Donald Trump Jr.'s June 2016 meeting with Natalia Veselnitskaya. The younger Trump agreed to the meeting after being told by an intermediary in an email chain she was a Russian government attorney who would give him material damaging Clinton to support Moscow's effort to help Trump win the election.
The younger Trump said the lawyer had no information about Clinton and the meeting quickly ended.
President Trump has said he only learned of the meeting in the last week, a gathering at Trump Tower in New York that also was attended by Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner, Trump's then-campaign manager, Paul Manafort, and a long-time Russian-American lobbyist in Washington who was a one-time Soviet military officer.
But Senator Mark Warner, the leading Democrat on the Senate Intelligence Committee, says that he finds it "unbelievable" that Trump was not told about the meeting a year ago.
The meeting is now one focus of several Washington investigations into Russian meddling in the election, with numerous congressional panels interviewing witnesses and scheduling hearings.
Special Counsel Robert Mueller, a former director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, is now heading a criminal investigation. He is probing contacts between Trump's campaign and Russian interests and whether Trump obstructed justice by firing James Comey, then the FBI director who was leading the agency's Russia investigation before Mueller took over.
A new Washington Post-ABC News poll said that 60 percent of those it surveyed believe the younger Trump's meeting with the Russian lawyer was inappropriate.
President Trump on Sunday fumed at the American news media for its reporting on the meeting, accusing reporters of "distorting democracy."
Source-VOA
PUBLIC FORECAST FOR TODAY & TOMORROW 17TH & 18th JULY 2017
GENERAL SITUATION: DEEP LAYERED TROUGH IS MOVING ACROSS THE BAHAMAS & WILL MAINTAIN SOME UNSETTLED WEATHER CONDITIONS OVER OUR ISLANDS THROUGH TONIGHT
SPECIAL WARNINGS: BOATERS AND BEACH GOERS SHOULD REMAIN ALERT FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF WATERSPOUT ACTIVITY. HEAVY DOWNPOURS AND THUNDERSTORM ACTIVITY COULD PRODUCE LOCALIZE FLOODING IN LOW LYING AND FLOOD PRONE AREAS.
FOR THE TCI AND ALL AREAS:
WEATHER: PARTLY CLOUDY TO CLOUDY SKIES WITH SCATTERED SHOWERS AND WIDELY SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS, SOME HEAVY AT TIMES THROUGH TONIGHT
ADVISORY: SMALL CRAFT SHOULD BE ALERT FOR GUSTY WINDS AND HIGHER SEAS IN OR NEAR HEAVY SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS. A SMALL CRAFT CAUTION WILL COME INTO EFFECT IN THE CENTRAL AND SOUTHEAST BAHAMAS LATER TONIGHT
WINDS: SOUTHEAST TO SOUTH AT 10 TO 15 KNOTS IN THE NORTHWEST BAHAMAS AND EAST TO SOUTHEAST 10 TO 15 KNOTS BUT INCREASING TO 15 TO 20 KNOTS IN THE CENTRAL AND SOUTHEAST LATER TONIGHT OVER OPEN WATERS
SEAS: 2 TO 4 FEET BUT INCREASING TO 4 TO 6 FEET TONIGHT IN THE CENTRAL AND SOUTHEAST BAHAMAS TONIGHT
DAYTIME HIGH TEMPERATURE: 91°F 33°C
OVERNIGHT LOW TEMPERATURE: 75°F 24°C
SUNRISE: 06:30 AM MOONSET: 02:12 PM LOW TIDE: 08:35 AM
SUNSET: 08:02 PM MOONRISE: 01:59 PM TUE HIGH TIDE: 02:59 PM
LOW TIDE: 09:20 PM
HIGH TIDE: 03:13 AM TUE
EXTENDED FORECAST: HIGH PRESSURE RIDGE WILL EXTEND OVER THE ISLANDS FOR THE NEXT FEW DAYS
FORECAST FOR TUESDAY
WEATHER: PARTLY SUNNY AND HOT WITH BRIEF PASSING ISOLATED SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS TURNING FAIR AND WARM AT NIGHT
WINDS: SOUTHEAST TO SOUTH 10 TO 15 KNOTS IN THE NORTHWEST BAHAMAS AND 15 TO 20 KNOTS IN THE CENTRAL AND SOUTHEAST BAHAMAS
SEAS: 2 TO 4 FEET IN THE NORTHWEST BAHAMAS AND 4 TO 6 FEET IN THE CENTRAL AND SOUTHEAST BAHAMAS
FORECAST FOR WEDNESDAY
WEATHER: PARTLY SUNNY AND HOT WITH BRIEF PASSING ISOLATED SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS TURNING FAIR AND WARM AT NIGHT
WINDS: SOUTHEAST TO SOUTH 10 TO 15 KNOTS IN THE NORTHWEST BAHAMAS AND 15 TO 20 KNOTS IN THE CENTRAL AND SOUTHEAST BAHAMAS
SEAS: 2 TO 4 FEET IN THE NORTHWEST BAHAMAS AND 4 TO 6 FEET IN THE CENTRAL AND SOUTHEAST BAHAMAS
TROPICAL WEATHER OUTLOOK: 1. A SMALL LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM LOCATED ABOUT 800 MILES EAST OF THE WINDWARD ISLANDS IS MOVING WESTWARD AT ABOUT 15 MPH. ASSOCIATED SHOWER AND THUNDERSTORM ACTIVITY IS BEGINNING TO SHOW SOME OF ORGANIZATION, AND ENVIRONMENTAL CONDITIONS ARE FORECAST TO BE MARGINALLY CONDUCIVE FOR SOME OF THIS SYSTEM BEFORE IT REACHES THE LESSER ANTILLES IN TWO TO THREE DAYS. AFTER THAT TIME, LESS UPPER-LEVEL WINDS ARE EXPECTED TO HINDER ADDITIONAL DEVELOPMENT.
AN AIR FORCE RESERVE AIRCRAFT IS SCHEDULED TO INVESTIGATE THE DISTURBANCE THIS AFTERNOON, IF NECESSARY. CHANCE OF THROUGH THE NEXT 48 HOURS TO 5 DAYS IS MEDIUM AT 40 TO 50%. 2. AN AREA OF DISTURBED WEATHER HAS SEVERAL HUNDRED MILES WEST-SOUTHWEST OF THE CABO VERDE ISLANDS. SOME DEVELOPMENT OF THIS SYSTEM IS OVER THE NEXT SEVERAL DAYS WHILE IT MOVES SLOWLY TOWARD THE WEST-NORTHWEST OR NORTHWEST OVER THE OPEN ATLANTIC CHANCE OF FORMATION THROUGH 48 HOURS IS LOW AT 10% AND THROUGH 5 DAYS IS LOW AT 20%.
Four Defendants faced the Providenciales Magistrate's Court
Earlier on Monday July 17, 2017, Legal Assistant John Ewing Jr. appeared in the Providenciales Magistrate court representing the National Insurance Board in the following matters.
Defendant Edwin Hernandez Cueto was bond to appear in the Providenciales Magistrate’s Court to answer to complaints filed by the NIB for failing to pay NIB contributions and additional charges as an employer in the amount of $5,572.22. A bench warrant was issued for the defendant. The matter was adjourned for mention on Monday, August 14, 2017 at 9am.
In the second hearing, Defendant Ricardo Forbes was bond to appear in the Providenciales Magistrate’s Court to answer to complaints filed by the NIB for failing to pay NIB contributions and additional charges as a self-employed person in the amount of $6,434.16. A bench warrant was issued for the defendant. The matter was adjourned for mention on Monday, August 24, 2017 at 9am.
Mr. Steven Jennings of Steel Unlimited appeared in the Providenciales Magistrate’s Court to answer to complaints filed by the NIB for failing to pay NIB contributions and additional charges as an employer and self-employed person in the amount of $28,283.83. The matter was adjourned for mention on Monday, August 14, 2017 at 9am.
The final defendant, Tracey-Ann Ewing-Hurdle was bond to appear in the Providenciales Magistrate’s Court to answer to an application for a writ of execution filed by the NIB for the levying of $23,760.28. The matter was adjourned for mention on Monday, August 14, 2017 at 9am.
C&W COMMUNICATIONS IN THE VANGUARD OF PRE-5G TESTING IN THE CARIBBEAN
At the 33rd CANTO Annual Conference & Trade Exhibition, John Reid, CEO of C&W Communications (C&W), announced that C&W has completed a groundbreaking pre-5G (fifth generation wireless broadband technology) trial in Antigua. Once installed, Antigua will be the first country in the region with the most advanced pre-5G network, delivering download peak speeds of up to 800 Mbps. In the trial’s next phase, the Company expects to test a 5G prototype reaching 2 to 5 Gbps peak speeds, which will have a profound positive impact on the island.
The announcement came as part of Reid’s keynote address today to prominent Caribbean officials at the 33rd CANTO Annual Conference & Trade Exhibition in the Dominican Republic. “These are exciting times for C&W Communications, as we continue to invest and develop more pioneering innovations to meet the needs of our customers and enable growth in the region through transformative technology,” said Reid. “This pre-5G trial in the Caribbean, is a significant step towards the evolution of C&W’s mobile networks across the region to 5G, and providing Gigabit speeds to our customers in Antigua,” he continued.
C&W’s pre-5G technology trial, a combined effort with parent company Liberty Global, is based on LTE Advanced Pro (LTE-A Pro), the latest LTE evolution, that delivers lower latency, more capacity and improved reliability for customers. This translates into a faster mobile internet experience where customers can better participate in advanced technology such as richer video experience and new apps.
In early October, the Company will further test a 5G prototype network designed to deliver wireless data connections above 2 Gbps. If the trials are successful, and the business case favorable, the Company plans to invest another $5 million in Antigua alone to significantly upgrade the wireless infrastructure there. C&W has invested $1.5 billion in the region over the last three years.
5G is a new set of standards beyond traditional 4G/LTE technologies. This set of standards will allow operators to deliver wireless data connections above 1 Gbps and to enable the Internet of Things (IoT). C&W’s pre-5G trial and 5G prototype trials are part of a partnership with Ericsson, who will provide the equipment and software in Antigua and across the Caribbean.
SPORTS MINISTER CONGRATULATES COLBY JENNINGS
Hon. Karen Malcolm, Minister of Education, Youth, Sports and Library Services has congratulated Colby Jennings on an impressive performance in the track and field event at the IAAF World Under 18 Championships in Nyrobi, Kenya where he won Bronze medal in the final 400m.
Hon Malcolm stated; "My Ministry is looking forward to welcoming Colby back home and celebrating his achievement. Colby is still quite young and I'm confident that he will achieve many more records in his career."
"I am elated to see our athletes demonstrating their phenomenal skills competing against larger countries on the world stage performing at the highest level and actually securing medals."
The Minister encourages the public to attend the celebrations when Colby returns to the Turks and Caicos Islands. "We must come and support our athlete. I admire the humility of our athletes in both victory and defeat. Qualities which signifies the making of great athletes."
Colby Jennings will join the team of athletes from Turks and Caicos Islands in Nassau, Bahamas during the course of the week. The team left the islands on July 16, 2017, to participate in the Commonwealth Youth Games.
A representative from the Department of Sports, Mr. Kyle Knowles will also accompany the team. Hon. Malcolm wishes all the athletes, their coaches and support teams all the best in the Commonwealth Youth Games and will be following the team's progress with great interest as they perform in the Bahamas. The government remains committed to providing the necessary resources to help the athletes achieve success.
Investigative Officer Completes Attachment in Saint Maarten
The Investigative Officer within The Turks and Caicos Islands Office of the Complaints Commission, Ms. Ciphany Skippings, recently completed a one week attachment with the Bureau of the Ombudsman in Saint Maarten. The objective of the attachment was to bring about an awareness of the overall structure, capabilities and functioning of the Complaints Commission and to enhance the knowledge, skills, expertise and social behavior of the Investigative Officer.
Ms. Skippings was able to participate in a number of planned programmes which allowed for the exchange of ideas, techniques, practices and procedures, ultimately being able to receive the benefit of observing and experiencing the day to day activities and functioning of the operation of the Bureau of the Ombudsman in Saint Maarten, with an aim to being able to compare and comprise an analysis of the similarities and differences in the carrying out of investigative duties here in the Turks and Caicos Islands with those of our counter parts.
The training aspects targeted areas which included:
Investigative Planning Strategies
The Importance of Establishing Guidelines for Procedures
Report Writing
The Importance of Maintaining Equilibrium and;
Progressive Patterns of Interdependence in the workplace
Ms. Skippings stated; "The experience gained was very rewarding, comprehensive and thought provoking."