Puerto Rico mayor derides Trump actions
The mayor of the Puerto Rican capital San Juan says President Donald Trump's response to the hurricane that devastated the US territory last year is a "stain on his presidency".
Carmen Yulin Cruz's comments came a day after officials said 2,975 people had died in Puerto Rico following Hurricane Maria last September.
The revised death toll is nearly 50 times the previous estimate of 64.
"The Trump administration killed the Puerto Rican with neglect," she said.
Speaking to CNN, she added: "The Trump administration led us to believe that they were helping when they weren't really up to par."
The territory has struggled to repair its infrastructure and power grid since the storm, and is asking US Congress for $139bn (£108bn) in recovery funds.
Ms Cruz criticised Mr Trump personally for his response to the crisis, referencing a photo op during which the president threw rolls of paper towels to a crowd of hurricane survivors.
"Shame on President Trump for not even once - not even yesterday - just saying: 'Look, I grieve with the people of Puerto Rico.'" she said.
"This will be a stain on his presidency for as long as he lives. Because rather than come here to support us, he came here to throw paper towels at us, and we will never forget and we will always remember."
President Trump praised the federal response to the hurricane-ravaged island in the weeks following the storm. But critics accused him of showing more concern for residents in Texas and Florida after they were hit by hurricanes.
During a visit to Puerto Rico in October, Mr Trump suggested officials should be "proud" the death toll - at the time only 16 - was not as high as "a real catastrophe" like Hurricane Katrina in 2005.
BAHAMAS AND TURKS AND CAICOS ISLANDS PUBLIC FORECAST 29TH AUGUST, 2018
GENERAL SITUATION: THE COMBINATION OF AN UPPER LEVEL TROUGH IN THE VICINITY OF THE CENTRAL AND SOUTHEAST BAHAMAS ALONG WITH A WEAK MID LEVEL TROUGH OVER THE NORTHWEST BAHAMAS WILL CONTINUE TO SUPPORT POCKETS OF UNSETTLED WEATHER ACROSS THE ISLANDS TODAY.
SPECIAL WARNINGS: BOATERS SHOULD REMAIN VIGILANT FOR POSSIBLE WATERSPOUT ACTIVITY AND BEACHGOERS IN THE CENTRAL AND SOUTHEAST BAHAMAS INCLUDING THE TURKS AND CAICOS ISLANDS SHOULD CONTINUE TO EXERCISE CAUTION DUE TO MODERATE TO ROUGH SURF CONDITIONS AND THE RISK OF RIP CURRENTS AT EAST COAST BEACHES.
ALL AREAS
WEATHER: VARIABLE CLOUDINESS, HOT AND HUMID WITH SCATTERED SHOWERS AND THE CHANCE OF ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS THROUGH TONIGHT.
ADVISORY: SMALL CRAFT CAUTION REMAINS IN EFFECT FOR THE CENTRAL AND SOUTHEAST BAHAMAS. BOATERS SHOULD ASLO BE ALERT FOR GUSTY WINDS AND HIGHER SEAS IN OR NEAR HEAVY SHOWERS OR THUNDERSTORMS.
WINDS: EAST TO SOUTHEAST AT 10 TO 15 KNOTS IN THE NORTHWEST BAHAMAS …EASTERLY AT 15 TO 20 KNOTS IN THE CENTRAL AND SOUTHEAST BAHAMAS INCLUDING THE TURKS AND CAICOS ISLANDS OVER OPEN WATERS.
SEAS: 2 TO 4 FEET IN THE NORTHWEST BAHAMAS AND 4 TO 7 FEET OVER THE OCEAN IN THE CENTRAL AND SOUTHEAST BAHAMAS INCLUDING THE TURKS AND CAICOS ISLANDS.
DAYTIME HIGH TEMPERATURE: 92F 33C HEAT INDEX: 105F 41C
OVERNITE LOW TEMPERATURE: 79F 26C
SUNRISE: 6:50AM SUNSET: 7:30PM
MOONSET: 9:25AM MOONRISE: 9:45PM
HIGH TIDE: 9:23AM LOW TIDE: 3:34PM
HIGH TIDE: 9:38PM LOW TIDE: 3:55AM THUR.
EXTENDED FORECAST: UPPER LEVEL TROUGHING WILL KEEP RAIN CHANCES ELEVATED WHILE A HIGH PRESSURE SYSTEM ANCHORED NORTH OF THE AREA WILL CONTINUE TO SUPPORT MODERATE TO FRESH WINDS ACROSS THE ISLANDS INTO THE WEEKEND.
Cayman Islands speaker denies working with blacklisted Chinese company
Former premier and current speaker of the Legislative Assembly in the Cayman Islands, McKeeva Bush, has denied that his consulting firm is working with or consulting for China Harbour Engineering Company (CHEC). The parent company of CHEC, China Communications Construction Company Limited (CCCC), was barred from being involved in projects financed by the World Bank in 2009 under its fraud and corruption sanctioning policy.
In a memo written on behalf of his company, WMB International Consulting Ltd, regarding his connections to CHEC, Bush indicated that he was in Belize in June “introducing” the Beijing-based firm to possible investments there, but he has said he is not working with them.
n 2013, as then premier, Bush faced opposition from Britain’s Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) over his decision to negotiate with CHEC outside international procurement standards over the development of cruise berthing facilities in Grand Cayman.
The World Bank had stated that any firm directly or indirectly controlled by CCCC is ineligible for any World Bank financed contracts related to roads and bridges during the period 12 January 2009 to 12 January 2017, which automatically extended to CHEC as a major subsidiary of CCCC.
In its efforts to combat corruption in public sector contracting, the bank prohibits member countries from awarding World Bank-financed contracts to any of the firms or individuals that it has sanctioned.
CHEC rejected the concerns, stressing that it was not involved in and had never been involved in any activity that has attracted sanctions by the World Bank.
It said the issue related to 2003 and involved the China Road and Bridge Group, which was later taken over by CCCC in 2005. CHEC claimed its parent company came under the debarment in 2011 based on changes made at that time to the World Bank system.
The question of Bush’s continuing relationship with CHEC re-emerged in June this year, when Bush was reportedly in Belize consulting for Sinopharm, a Chinese pharmaceutical and health services firm, and introducing CHEC to possible business partners.
Bush told local media that his only connection to CHEC was that he introduced them to possible business in Belize.
“I am not a consultant for CHEC and have no relationship with CHEC in Belize or in Cayman,” Bush told Cayman News Service.
The Cayman Islands government admitted earlier this year that CHEC had submitted applications during the bidder pre-qualification stage of the latest iteration of the George Town cruise berthing facility. Since then it emerged that the Chinese firm had not continued with its bid.
Ed Sheeran won't release an album next year
Ed Sheeran's Divide was last year's biggest-selling album, shifting 2.7 million copies in the UK, but the star has no immediate plans to follow it up.
"I'd like to bring out a project next year that isn't an album," he told BBC News.
"Something that isn't pushed on radio. Something that's not what I usually do, that just clears the air a little bit."
He added he'd "happily" take a year off when his world tour ends next September before starting his fourth album.
The news may disappoint fans, but Sheeran pointed out that spending three years on tour was "weird" and he'd need time to decompress.
The star previously took a "gap year" between his second record, Multiply, and its chart-conquering successor - time he spent whitewater rafting, swimming with bull sharks (without a cage) and bungee jumping.
However, he admitted he had never stopped writing songs.
"I'll never not make music. It's my hobby," he told the BBC's Chi Chi Izundu. "I wouldn't enjoy life if I didn't do music.
"I don't see music as work. I see this [speaking to the press] as work. No-one picks up a guitar hoping one day they're going to be interviewed."
US Open 2018: Caroline Wozniacki into second round
Australian Open champion Caroline Wozniacki beat Australian Sam Stosur 6-3 6-2 to reach the second round of the US Open in New York.
Second seed Wozniacki, 28, broke the 2011 champion's serve three times in the first set and twice in the second.
The Dane will play Ukrainian Lesia Tsurenko in round three.
Fifth seed and two-time Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova beat Belgian Yanina Wickmayer 6-1 6-4 at Flushing Meadows.
The Czech, 28, broke serve twice to take the first set and won five successive games from 4-1 down in the second. She will face China's Yafan Wang next.
Kvitova, who reached the quarter-finals in 2017, said: "I'm not really looking too much ahead. I played great tennis here last year and it was amazing for me.
"So far this year it has been great too. It is good to be in the second round of another Grand Slam and to be playing good tennis."
Latvian 10th seed Jelena Ostapenko, the 2017 French Open champion, beat Germany's Andrea Petkovic 6-4 4-6 7-5 to set up a second-round meeting with American Taylor Townsend.
Japan's Naomi Osaka, seeded 20th, defeated German Laura Siegemund 6-3 6-2 and will play Romani's Monica Niculescu or Israel's Julia Glushko next.
Wimbledon champion and fourth seed Angelique Kerber will face Russia's Margarita Gasparyan on Louis Armstrong.
Top seed Simona Halep was knocked out in the first round on Monday
Florida shooting: EA suspends events after gamers killed
A major eSports tournament has been suspended by games publisher Electronic Arts (EA) after a shooting that saw two competitors killed on Sunday.
Three events have been cancelled while the firm conducts a "comprehensive review of safety protocols”.
EA’s chief executive Andrew Wilson said he was “filled with shock and grief” over the killings in Florida.
Taylor Robertson, 28, and Elijah Clayton, 22, were "respected, positive and skilled competitors”, he added.
Police named the killer, who later turned the gun on himself, as 24-year-old David Katz. Police said he targeted his victims but have not shared a possible motive.
The incident was partially captured on a livestream of the event being broadcast on video games site Twitch. Competitors were playing Madden NFL, EA's best-selling American Football title.
The shooting, which took place at the Jacksonville Landing shopping and entertainment complex in Florida, had prompted calls for greater security at eSports events.
Aston Martin revs up for London listing
Aston Martin is expected to confirm plans to list on the London Stock Exchange when it announces annual results on Wednesday morning.
The British sports car maker said earlier this year it was considering making its shares available to the public or looking for a buyer.
It is understood the company will seek to sell a stake worth about £1bn, valuing it at between £4bn and £5bn.
Aston Martin sold 5,000 cars last year making its first profit since 2010.
Its main shareholders, Italian private equity fund Investindustrial and a group of Kuwaiti investors, hired an investment bank to advise on options at the start of the year.
Under Andy Palmer, who left Nissan to become chief executive in 2014, Aston Martin's fortunes have been revived with the flagship DB11 coupe proving popular with buyers.
His turnaround plan have involved broadening the model range to include its first SUV, which goes into production next year.
The new models are expected to increase output "significantly" above 5,000 cars this year, Mr Palmer said.
Nissan had considered buying Aston Martin before Mr Palmer was convinced to run one of the most famous marques in motoring, but one that had been in a slow demise.
"Aston Martin has always relied on someone stepping in and injecting some more cash and saving it, but that's not the legacy I want to leave," Mr Palmer told the BBC in 2015.
Part of his strategy involves targeting female buyers - no easy task given the company has sold fewer than 4,000 cars to women in its 105-year history.
"Aston Martin must be less dependent on a narrow portfolio and one type of customer," Mr Palmer said.
It hopes to emulate the success of Italian luxury sports car rival Ferrari, which floated in New York almost three years ago.
Shares were priced at $52 and for the past two years have continued to climb, reaching almost $150 in June.
They were trading at just under $130 on Tuesday, valuing the company at about $24bn.
Toyota to invest $500m in Uber in driverless car deal
Japanese carmaker Toyota is to invest $500m (£387m) in Uber and expand a partnership to jointly develop self-driving cars.
The firm said this would involve the "mass-production" of autonomous vehicles that would be deployed on Uber's ride sharing network.
It is being viewed as a way for both firms to catch up with rivals in the competitive driverless car market.
The deal also values Uber at some $72bn, despite its mounting losses.
That is up 15% since its last investment in May but matches a previous valuation in February.
According to a press release issued by the firms, self-driving technology from each company will be integrated into purpose-built Toyota vehicles.
The fleet will be based on Toyota's Sienna Minivan model with pilot trials beginning in 2021.
Shigeki Tomoyama, executive vice president of Toyota Motor Corporation, said: "This agreement and investment marks an important milestone in our transformation to a mobility company as we help provide a path for safe and secure expansion of mobility services like ride-sharing."
Germany migrants: Protesters face off in Chemnitz
Rival protests over a murder in the east German city of Chemnitz have ended with several people injured as objects were hurled by both sides, police say.
Far-right activists had gathered in the centre for a second day as a Syrian and an Iraqi remained under arrest on suspicion of Sunday's deadly stabbing.
Anti-Nazi activists rallied just metres away, accusing the far right of using the death for political ends.
Injuries were caused when protesters on both sides threw objects, police say.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel had warned that "vigilante justice" would not be tolerated.
Police warned masked demonstrators who were picking up stones in the city, about 200km (120 miles) south of Berlin, that their actions were being filmed.
Earlier, authorities said police were investigating alleged assaults on an Afghan, a Syrian and a Bulgarian during the unrest that broke out on Sunday.
Reports have included mentions of protesters chasing foreigners, though there are few details.
Chemnitz police, quoted by the local broadcaster MDR, said: "We did not anticipate such a total of participants [on Sunday]".
Bigger crowds thronged the city centre on Monday. MDR estimated the far-right turnout to be 5,000, with some 1,000 leftists opposed to them.
BAHAMAS AND TURKS AND CAICOS ISLANDS PUBLIC FORECAST 28TH AUGUST 2018
THIS IS A PUBLIC FORECAST FOR TODAY AND TONIGHT TUESDAY 28TH AUGUST 2018 ISSUED BY THE BAHAMAS DEPARTMENT OF METEOROLOGY AT 6AM
GENERAL SITUATION: UPPER LEVEL TROUGHING ACROSS THE CENTRAL BAHAMAS ALONG WITH RICH TROPICAL MOISTURE FROM WAVES OF WEAK LOW LEVEL TROUGHING CONTINUES TO PRODUCE POCKETS OF UNSETTLED WEATHER OVER THE AREA.
SPECIAL WARNINGS: BOATERS SHOULD REMAIN VIGILANT FOR THE POSSIBILITY OF WATERSPOUT DEVELOPMENT TODAY WHILE BEACHGOERS ACROSS THE CENTRAL AND SOUTHEAST BAHAMAS SHOULD EXERCISE CAUTION FOR ROUGH SURF AND DANGEROUS RIP CURRENTS MAINLY ALONG EAST COAST BEACHES.
CENTRAL AND SOUTHEAST BAHAMAS INCLUDING THE TURKS AND CAICOS
WEATHER: PARTLY SUNNY, BREEZY AND HOT WITH FEW SCATTERED SHOWERS OR ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS LIKELY. PARTLY CLOUDY TO FAIR SKIES AND WARM AT NIGHT WITH THE CHANCE OF A PASSING SHOWER OR TWO.
ADVISORY: SMALL CRAFT SHOULD CONTINUE TO EXERCISE CAUTION.
WINDS: EASTERLY AT 15 TO 20 KNOTS OVER OPEN WATERS.
SEAS: 4 TO 6 FEET OVER THE OCEAN.
NORTHWEST BAHAMAS
WEATHER: VARIABLY CLOUDY, HOT AND HUMID WITH SCATTERED SHOWERS OR WIDELY SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS, SOME BECOMING HEAVY AT TIMES. PARTLY CLOUDY AND WARM TONIGHT WITH FEW LINGERING SHOWERS OR A POSSIBLE THUNDERSTORM 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 TO 15 KNOTS OVER OPEN WATERS.
SEAS: 2 TO 4 FEET OVER THE OCEAN.
DAYTIME HIGH TEMPERATURE: 92°F 34°C
HEAT INDEX: 105°F 41°C
OVERNITE LOW TEMPERATURE: 77°F 25°C
SUNRISE: 6:49 AM SUNSET: 7:31 PM
MOONSET: 8:23 AM MOONRISE: 9:09 PM
HIGH TIDE: 8:45 AM & 9:02 PM
LOW TIDE: 2:54 PM & 3:20 AM WED
EXTENDED FORECAST: UPPER LEVEL TROUGH ACROSS THE NORTHWEST AND CENTRAL BAHAMAS WILL CREATE POCKETS OF UNSETTLED WEATHER AS IT INTERACTS WITH WEAKER LOW LEVEL TROUGHS SHIFTING WESTWARDS ACROSS THE BAHAMAS.
MEANWHILE BROAD SURFACE HIGH PRESSURE RIDGE OVER THE AREA WILL PRODUCE MODERATE TO FRESH BREEZES MAINLY ACROSS THE CENTRAL AND SOUTHEAST BAHAMAS INCLUDING THE TURKS AND CAICOS ISLANDS THROUGH THURSDAY