Nicholas Bett: Kenya's former 400m hurdles world champion dies aged 28
Kenya's former 400m hurdles world champion Nicholas Bett has died aged 28, following a car crash on Wednesday.
Bett had just returned from the Africa Championships in Nigeria when he died in Nandi, north west Kenya.
In 2015, he made history in China by becoming the first Kenyan to win a world gold at a distance shorter than 800m.
He was a two-time African bronze medallist and his twin brother Haron Koech is also a hurdler.
Athletics Kenya confirmed Bett's death on Twitter, while Kenyan sports minister Rashid Echesa tweeted his condolences to the Bett family.
Gianni Moscon: Team Sky rider banned for trying to hit a rival at Tour de France
Team Sky rider Gianni Moscon has been banned for five weeks by the UCI, after he tried to hit another rider during stage 15 of this year's Tour de France.
The Italian, 24, was disqualified from the race after the incident with Team Fortuneo-Samsic's Elie Gesbert.
Moscon has apologised and accepted his punishment, which ends on 12 September, saying he "regretted" his actions.
"I reacted in the heat of the moment and it was never my intention to hit the rider," said Moscon.
"As the footage shows I didn't make contact, but I regret my actions and I have already apologised to both Gesbert and Team Fortuneo Samsic for the incident."
Last year, Moscon was suspended by Team Sky for six weeks after racially abusing a rival.
He was also disqualified from last year's World Championship road race after hanging onto a team car.
Team Principal, Sir Dave Brailsford, said he was "confident" that Moscon had learned from the incident.
"Gianni is still a relatively young rider at the start of his career and we will continue to give him the help and support he needs to learn, develop and move forward from this," Brailsford added.
Dave Bautista Threatens To Quit Guardians Of The Galaxy
The ongoing feud between Disney and now-ex Guardians of the Galaxy director, James Gunn, has become the biggest talking point in Hollywood.
Disney parted ways with the director last month after alt-right activists unearthed a number of offensive Tweets dating back several years.
Stars from the film have openly slammed Disney’s decision, admitting the Tweets may have been in bad taste however were not a reflection on Gunn’s true character.
Now Dave Bautista, who plays Drax the Destroyer, appears to be willing to take his complaints one step further, by walking away from the third instalment of the franchise in protest.
Now Dave Bautista, who plays Drax the Destroyer, appears to be willing to take his complaints one step further, by walking away from the third instalment of the franchise in protest.
Speaking to Shortlist, Bautista echoed what appears to be the general consensus regarding the Tweets amongst the cast.
“Nobody’s defending his tweets, but this was a smear campaign on a good man,” he said.
“I spoke to Chris Pratt the day after it happened and he’s a bit religious so he wanted time to pray and figure it out. James is one of the kindest, most decent people I’ve met.”
Bautista added that Gunn had actually already turned in his script for the third movie which is due to begin shooting early next year.
A replacement director has not been announced as of yet.
“Where I’m at right now is that if [Marvel] don’t use that script, then I’m going to ask them to release me from my contract, cut me out or recast me.
“I’d be doing James a disservice if I didn’t.”
The actor didn’t hold back on Twitter either, saying that it would be “pretty nauseating to work for someone who’d empower a smear campaign by fascists”.
BAHAMAS AND TURKS AND CAICOS PUBLIC FORECAST
FORECAST FOR TODAY AND TONIGHT WEDNESDAY 08TH AUGUST 2018.
GENERAL SITUATION: SEVERAL WEAK TROUGHS WILL AFFECT THE BAHAMAS WITH POCKETS OF UNSETTLED WEATHER WHILE BROAD HIGH PRESSURE RIDGE CONTINUES OVER THE AREA.
SPECIAL WARNINGS: MARINERS AND BEACHGOERS SHOULD REMAIN VIGILANT FOR POSSIBLE WATERSPOUT ACTIVITY TODAY. BEACHGOERS IN THE SOUTHEAST BAHAMAS INCLUDING THE TURKS AND CAICOS ISLANDS SHOULD BE ALERT FOR ROUGH SURF AND THE MODERATE RISK OF RIP CURRENT ALONG EASTERN SHORELINES.
SOUTHEAST BAHAMAS INCLUDING THE TURKS AND CAICOS ISLANDS
WEATHER: PARTLY TO MOSTLY SUNNY, HOT AND HUMID WITH THE CHANCE OF A PASSING SHOWER TODAY, TURNING MAINLY FAIR AND WARM TONIGHT.
ADVISORY: SMALL CRAFT SHOULD CONTINUE TO EXERCISE CAUTION
WINDS: EASTERLY AT 15 TO 20 KNOTS IN THE SOUTHEAST BAHAMAS, DIPPING TO 12 TO 18 KNOTS AT TIMES BY AFTERNOON.
SEAS: 4 TO 6 FEET OVER THE OCEAN BUT FALLING TO 3 TO 5 FEET AT TIMES DURING AFTERNOON HOURS.
NORTHWEST AND CENTRAL BAHAMAS
WEATHER: PARTLY SUNNY, HOT AND HUMID WITH FEW SCATTERED SHOWERS OR ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS MAINLY ACROSS THE NORTHWEST BAHAMAS. PARTLY CLOUDY TO FAIR AND WARM AT NIGHT WITH FEW BRIEF PASSING SHOWERS LIKELY.
ADVISORY: BOATERS SHOULD BE ALERT FOR GUSTY WINDS AND HIGHER SEAS IN OR NEAR HEAVY SHOWERS OR THUNDERSTORMS.
WINDS: EAST TO SOUTHEAST AT 10 KNOTS IN THE NORTHWEST BAHAMAS, FALLING LIGHT AND VARIABLE AT TIMES AND EASTERLY AT 10 TO 15 KNOTS IN THE CENTRAL BAHAMAS.
SEAS: 1 TO 3 FEET IN THE NORTHWEST BAHAMAS AND 2 TO 4 FEET IN THE CENTRAL BAHAMAS.
DAYTIME HIGH TEMPERATURE: 92F 33C
OVERNITE LOW TEMPERATURE: 80F 27C
HEAT INDEX: 106F 41C
SUNRISE: 6:41AM WED. SUNSET: 7:48PM WED.
MOONSET: 5:26PM WED. MOONRISE: 4:34AM THU.
LOW TIDE: 10:30AM WED. HIGH TIDE: 4:59PM WED.
LOW TIDE: 11:28PM WED. HIGH TIDE: 5:19AM THU.
EXTENDED FORECAST: SEVERAL WEAK TROUGHS WILL AFFECT THE BAHAMAS WITH POCKETS OF UNSETTLED WEATHER AS BROAD SURFACE HIGH PRESSURE RIDGE CONTINUES OVER THE AREA.
FORECAST FOR THURSDAY
WEATHER: PARTLY SUNNY, HOT AND HUMID WITH FEW SCATTERED SHOWERS OR ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS NEAR THE BIMINI AND ANDROS AREA. MAINLY FAIR AND WARM AT NIGHT WITH BRIEF PASSING SHOWERS LIKELY.
WINDS: EAST-SOUTHEAST TO SOUTH-SOUTHEAST AT 10 TO 15 KNOTS IN THE NORTHWEST AND CENTRAL BAHAMAS, FALLING LIGHT AND VARIABLE AT TIMES ACROSS THE NORTHWEST BAHAMAS AND EASTERLY AT 12 TO 18 KNOTS ACROSS THE SOUTHEAST BAHAMAS.
SEAS: 2 TO 4 FEET OVER THE NORTHWEST AND CENTRAL BAHAMAS, FALLING TO 1 TO 3 FEET AT TIMES IN THE NORTHWEST BAHAMAS AND 3 TO 5 FEET IN THE SOUTHEAST BAHAMAS INCLUDING THE TURKS AND CAICOS ISLANDS.
FORECAST FOR FRIDAY
WEATHER: PARTLY CLOUDY TO CLOUDY ACROSS THE NORTHWEST BAHAMAS WITH SOME SCATTERED SHOWERS OR ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS DURING THE DAYTIME THROUGH NIGHTFALL. ELSEWHERE PARTLY TO MOSTLY SUNNY, HOT AND HUMID WITH THE CHANCE OF ISOLATED SHOWERS, TURNING MAINLY FAIR AND WARM AT NIGHT.
WINDS: VARIABLE AT 10 KNOTS OR LESS ACROSS THE NORTHWEST AND CENTRAL BAHAMAS AND EASTERLY AT 12 TO 18 KNOTS ACROSS THE SOUTHEAST BAHAMAS INCLUDING THE TURKS AND CAICOS ISLANDS, BUT GUSTY AT TIMES.
SEAS: 1 TO 3 FEET OVER THE OCEAN IN THE NORTHWEST AND CENTRAL BAHAMAS AND 3 TO 5 FEET OVER THE OCEAN IN THE SOUTHEAST BAHAMAS INCLUDING THE TURKS AND CAICOS ISLANDS, BUT HIGHER IN GUSTS
Nicaraguan human rights group closes offices after threats
The Nicaraguan Association for Human Rights (ANPDH) says it has closed its offices in the Central American country after its staff received "alarming information" about threats to them.
The group has been denouncing alleged rights abuses by the Nicaraguan government during more than three months of anti-government protests. It says 448 people have been killed since the protests began on 18 April.
ANPDH said it had information about plans to persecute its staff. The group said its workers had received death threats over the phone. The NGO also said that it had learned of plans to accuse staff of fabricated crimes.
ANPDH said the closure of its Managua offices would be "temporary" in order to safeguard the safety of its workers, who had been harassed by armed groups. The group said it would continue to receive reports of human rights abuses via email and WhatsApp.
Human rights activists are not the only ones who have reported being harassed and threatened.
Dozens of doctors and health workers have been sacked. They say their dismissals came after they treated injured anti-government protesters.
Professors teaching at state-run universities have also reported receiving dismissal letters which they say were issued because of their criticism of the government.
Catholic clergy, who have been mediating in the crisis, have also come under attack from pro-government groups.
Peru poisoning: Ten die after eating contaminated food at wake
The number of people killed by suspected poisoned food after a wake in the Ayacucho region of southern Peru has risen to 10.
The health minister said she suspected the food had come into contact with insecticide. Local hospitals said 21 people were in a serious condition.
About 50 people attended the wake of a local man where a meat stew believed to be the source of the intoxication was served.
Specialists who have travelled to the affected district of San José de Ushua said they would need to carry out further tests to be sure.
Regional health director John Tinco Bautista said many of those who attended the wake began falling ill within hours. Among the fatalities are the dead man's two eldest sons. The mayor of San José de Ushua, Iván Villagomez Llamoca, is among those taken ill. His father and his 12-year-old nephew have died.
The incident comes less than a month after hundreds of Peruvian schoolchildren fell ill after eating breakfasts provided at more than a dozen schools in Cañete province.
The free meals are part of a government programme to ensure schoolchildren from poorer backgrounds receive adequate nutrition.
In that case, the source of the contamination was suspected to have been a fruit juice that had gone off. The company which provided the breakfasts is facing legal action.
China to hit US with tariffs on US imports worth $16bn
China's commerce ministry has announced that it will start imposing 25% import duties targeting $16bn (£12.4bn) worth of US goods.
The Chinese counter-move will take effect immediately after the US imposes tariffs on the same amount of Chinese goods on 23 August.
The list of US imports affected by the taxes includes coal, oil, chemicals and some medical equipment.
Last month, the US imposed duties of 25% on Chinese imports worth $34bn.
The US is also considering further tariffs on another $200bn worth of Chinese goods which could come into effect in September.
For its part, China has threatened to ratchet up the tit-for-tat trade war by slapping tariffs on another $60bn of American imports.
At the same time, Beijing reported a $28.1bn trade surplus with the US in July, just below the record $28.9bn seen in June. But it was 11% higher than in the same month last year.
Indonesia earthquake death toll rises to more than 345
The death toll from Sunday's devastating earthquake on the Indonesian island of Lombok has risen to 347, according to the state-run Anatara news agency. The majority of people died in Kayangan, on the north side of the island, Antara reported. Another 1,447 people were injured and 165,003 were displaced by the 6.9 magnitude quake, National Disaster Management Agency spokesman Sutopo Purwo Nugroho told the news agency earlier.
On Tuesday, the government estimated 20,000 people are in need of assistance, with around 80% of buildings destroyed, as aid workers struggled to reach those effected by the disaster.
"We are concerned aid trucks can't get through because of the debris, and there are also landslides happening," Husni Husni, a Jarkarta-based representative for the Red Cross, said."A lot of people are displaced, and many have migrated to the hilly and mountainous areas because of fear of a tsunami."
Meanwhile, the disaster management agency said Tuesday all of the 2,000 tourists on the Gili Islands had now been evacuated. For residents of Lombok and surrounding islands, many saw their homes destroyed, with the collapse of roofs and walls causing the majority of casualties from the quake.
Gusti Lanang Wisnuwandana, an official with the Mataram Search and Relief Office, told Antara that medical and rescue workers were struggling to deal with survivors terrified of being indoors after the quake.
Lobster Season to commence on 15th August, 2018
Fishing interests, restaurants and the general public are reminded of the opening of Lobster Season on Wednesday, August 15th 2018. The season will close on March 31st, 2019.
The Department would like to solicit the cooperation of Fishers and Purchasers in maintaining a healthy and sustainable lobster fishery, and thank everyone in advance for adhering to the guidelines below.
Restrictions relating to crawfish, as per the Fisheries Protection Ordinance, are listed below:
Crawfish size restrictions are as follows:
o When whole, a length of 3.25 inches measured from the front of the groove between the horns directly above the eyes, along the middle of the back to the rear edge of the back shell; or
o When the tail has been separated, a tail weight of 5 ounces whether processed or not;
- Fishers are not to be in the possession of any egg-bearing crawfish;
- Fishers are not to remove eggs from egg-bearing crawfish;
- Fishers are not to take or be in possession of moulting / soft-shelled crawfish or crawfish in early stages of spawning (described as appearing 'tar-spotted'); and
- Fishers are to ensure that the crawfish are landed unharmed and whole after being taken and landed at processing plants or at home, unless processed at sea as per the terms of the processing license.
The Department will continue to implement its enforcement and monitoring measures to support the recovery of the lobster fishery stock which will guide informed management decisions to ensure future sustainability of the industry.
The DECR appeals to citizens, residents and visitors in the Turks & Caicos Islands, to familiarize themselves with and to uphold the Fisheries Regulations, and urges all responsible citizens to call the DECR at 338-4170 or email environment@gov.tc to report any violations.
Mrs. Caulette Swann-Simmons Appointed as Commercial Legal Counsel
The Office of the Deputy Governor is pleased to announce the appointment of Mrs. Caulette Swann-Simmons as the new Commercial Legal Counsel within the Ministry of Health's Interhealth Canada Contract Management Unit.
Mrs. Simmons was admitted to the Turks and Caicos Islands Bar in November 2006 and holds a Postgraduate Diploma in Legal Practice from the College of Law of England Wales in Guildford, Surrey, England; a Bachelor of Law L.L.B. (Hons.) from the University of Buckingham in Buckingham, England and an Associate of Arts Degree in Law and Criminal Justice from the College of the Bahamas in Nassau, Bahamas.
She served as the Senior Investigative Officer at the Office of the Complaints Commission from August 2016 to July 2018 and as the Legal Officer for the Turks and Caicos Islands National Insurance Board from November 2014-July 2016. Prior to this, Mrs. Swann-Simmons served as an Associate Attorney at Swann and Swann Attorneys at Law alongside her well-known local attorney father Mr. Wendell Swann.
Mrs. Swann-Simmons in expressing her excitement in taking up this new role said; "The opportunity to serve within the Public Service in the capacity of Commercial Legal Counsel to the Contract Management Unit is indeed an honor. I sought to find for myself a role within the Civil Service where I could use my professional experience to contribute in a more meaningful way to the advancement of the future development of these Turks and Caicos Islands. I view the work of the Contract Management Unit as vitally important to all persons in the Turks and Caicos Islands and I am extremely proud to become an added asset to the team to further aid in advancing the efforts of the Unit."
Commenting on the appointment, Deputy Governor Her Excellency Anya Williams said; "Congratulations is extended to Mrs. Swann-Simmons on her appointment as the Commercial Legal Counsel within the Ministry of Health's Contract Management Unit. As the Commercial Legal Counsel within the CMU, Mrs. Swann-Simmons will be responsible for ensuring compliance with all contracts regarding the provision of Health Services in the Turks and Caicos Islands and will be responsible for providing accurate and timely legal advice pertaining to the legal implications of clinical service delivery, policies, procedures and health care laws in the TCI. This appointment which follows on from the recent appointment of Mrs. Florinda Talbot as Deputy Director within the same unit, is a part of our efforts to strengthen contract management within the Ministry of Health and to increase our oversight of the Interhealth Canada contract. We wish Mrs. Swann-Simmons much success in her new role and look forward to positive results from the CMU going forward.