Archive for August, 2014
Nominations wanted for the 2014 arts awards
(CNS): The Cayman National Cultural Foundation has opened the nomination process for its 2014 awards that recognise those who attain a level of merit in their artistic discipline, contribute to the arts, culture and heritage of the Cayman Islands or support the work of the Foundation. Looking for suggestions from cultural and heritage organisations as well as from the general public officials asked people to begin submitting nominations for the CNCF Star for Creativity in the Arts and for the CNCF Heritage Cross. The CNCF's Grants and Awards Committee reviews the nominations and selects the award recipients.
The deadline for submission is 15 September and nomination for the CNCF Heritage Cross Award from the public can be made by either by post to: National Arts & Culture Awards, PO Box 30201, Grand Cayman KY1-1201, CAYMAN ISLANDS or by email to: culture@candw.ky.
CNCF Board Member, Morgan DaCosta, chairs the committee. The other members of the committee are CNCF Board Member, Lorna Reid, and Mary Anne Kosa. Posthumous nominations will be considered but the committee reserves the right not to present an award if no nominee satisfies the criteria.
For more information www.artscayman.org
Cayman U17 boys lose 3-0 to Guadeloupe in CFU
(CNS): Despite including a significant number of players from last year’s U15 team which made a great showing at the 2013 CONCACAF tournament, the chances of Cayman’s U17 national football team making it through to the CFU finals next month in Haiti were narrowed on Saturday night when the boys lost 3-0 to Guadalope in their opening match in Jamaica. Facing the favourites this evening who will be in front of a home crowd at the Anthony Spaulding Complex, Kingston at 7pm, the Cayman boys will have a very tough time taking any points from that fixture.
Although the Cayman boys played well in the first half on Saturday they were unable to find the back of the net. In the second half, Guadeloupe grew in confidence when Heindrix Julius opened the scoring in the 54th minute. Sylguy Theo Fumont doubled Guadeloupe's advantage in the 79th from the penalty spot and a minute later Dylanne Julien Bordin solidified Cayman’s defeat.
Meanwhile, Jamaica trounced the US Virgin Islands in a staggering 19-0 defeat when Donavan Dawkins scored seven goals. Justin McMaster scored four and Alex Marshall made a hattrick. Other goal scorers were Nicholas Nelson who scored two Tajea Brown, Ajeanie Talbot and Deshane Beckford.
The final match for what is a tough group for the Cayman team takes place on Wednesday afternoon at 4pm against the US Virgin Islands.
700 patients treated at HCCI
(CNS): The Shetty hospital which has been open to patients for six months has seen over seven hundred patients come through its doors with either heart or joint issues, doctors said last week. They have now carried out more than 50 different procedures with both cardiac and orthopaedic patients. Health City Cayman Islands was originally billed as a facility that would offer affordable care to patients in North America but it has been focusing on the Caribbean region as it awaits its accreditation by the Joint Commission in the US. Officials said they expected the hospital would get the nod from the US health standards body before February next year when American patient numbers are expected to increase.
At present however, doctors said, that they are working towards creating a specialist heart clinic at the facility spearheaded by Dr Devi Shetty for the Caribbean region and are working with regional health authorities.
Speaking at a press briefing regarding the first LVAD procedure at the East End facility on Thursday the hospital’s medical director, Dr Chandy Abraham, explained that the hospital is reaching out to and in talks across the region about the facility and what service and partnerships it can offer to Caribbean health authorities.
Dr Abraham also said that 21 children in Haiti have been identified as possible patients for the free operations promised by Dr Shetty to mark the opening of the Cayman hospital. With no local kids in need and most of the regional patients having health insurance cover, the doctor explained that it was Haiti where the need was the greatest and it was hoped that the first of those young patients will be coming to the hospital in the next few weeks.
The 140 bed facility is expected to launch Cayman’s medical tourism sector and both the local investors involved in the development of the hospital and Joseph Imparato, another local developer, are expected to begin work in the coming months on hotel accommodation, as well as other facilities and amenities to support the expected growth in visiting patients and their family and friends.
The long term project is still billed as ultimately becoming a 2000 bed healthcare city which will also include a training hospital and medical college. There is hope that more young Caymanians will take up healthcare as a profession and while most of the medical staff at the Shetty hospital were brought from India as time goes on those jobs are expected to go to qualified local and regional personnel.
Ebola an unlikely threat, Chikungunya contained
(CNS): Immigration staff and health officials are on alert for and ready to deal with anyone arriving in Cayman with Ebola but the threat from the deadly haemorrhagic disease is considered low. Cayman has few visitors from the West African region and despite being an infectious disease it is spread mostly through poor hygiene practices which officials said wouldn’t be an issue here. Anyone arriving from overseas who becomes ill on a plane or at the airport is as a matter of course quickly quarantined and treated according to best practice. Meanwhile, the regional outbreak of Chikungunya which is having more of an impact locally has been contained.
As a result of the work of the MRCU and the response from the public in keeping their yards free of standing water the numbers of the Aedes aegypti, which spreads the disease, are being kept down. There have been just five confirmed cases of the disease since the first report in June in Cayman. Although the hospital has sent around two dozen blood samples from patients suspected of having chikungunya for testing four cases with a travel history to endemic countries have been confirmed positive and only one patient with no travel history appeared to have contracted the disease locally.
The health minister urged the public to remain vigilant over standing water and to cover up and wear repellent and said that the public health department would continue to release the statistics related to suspected or confirmed cases though it has now been more than a month since any new cases were identified.
See the minister’s full statement about the disease threats below
Exposed garbage fueling fires
(CNS): With the two compactors owned by the department of environmental constantly undergoing maintenance and a new one not yet arrived the minister with responsibility for the George Town landfill said it was difficult for staff to prevent the ongoing fires. However, he said the team was working hard with the fire service to do the best they could until the new compactor, which is critical to managing the dump arrives. Osbourne Bodden said the department had the budget for fill to cover the garbage mound but it was the lack of a working compactor to push down the garbage before it is covered which was causing most of the problems and leaving the waste exposed to the elements.
“Right now we are managing operations there but the garbage is uncovered so there are a lot of things going on,” he said as he pointed to the summer heat adding to the chemical reactions and methane emissions making the area so combustible.
“We are working towards getting the existing compactors on their feet and a new one is on its way but the two we own have been broken and fixed, broken and fixed over and over,” he added.
The minister said without a working compactor the garbage can’t be compounded and then covered but he said it would not be long before the equipment was fully operational again and the team would be able to compress and cover the landfill and reduce the potential for fires.
“Right now we have large area of exposed landfill and it literally is playing with fire,” Bodden lamented. He said given the circumstances some six wells have now been dug at the site so the fire department has easy access to water at the site and staff are being exceptional vigilant watching for smouldering areas and catching fires early so they can be doused and controlled.
“We don’t like this but it’s what we are working with,” Bodden said on Friday following press briefing relating to Ebola and Chikungunya.
He said the process regarding the implementation of a national solid waste management solution was moving ahead in accordance with the law and the RFP for a consultant to produce the Outline Business Case was now closed and five bids had been received. The minister said one of those five would be chosen in the next few weeks and work would then begin on finding the best solution. He said the ministry was still on track for a working solution before the end of 2106 but as he has said many times there was nothing he could do to change the process set out in law.
With the solution still down the line he said the department was doing what it could to manage the situation.
Jennifer Ahearn the chief officer in the ministry said it was “a misconception that we are not doing anything” about managing the country’s waster problems until the new system is in place. “We are actively looking at what we can do now and have ordered new equipment. We are taking all the steps to do the best we can with what we have got even though procurement process is protracted.
Bodden also confirmed that the department has finally received two bids for the tyres currently stored at the landfill which were also the source of a serious fire earlier this year and discussions were on-going with the bidders.
OCC gets new 12 month contract
(CNS): The complaints commissioner who has been in the post since August 2010 has been reappointed for one year. Nicola Williams told CNS that she had recently been given the contract which will see her stay in the job until August next year. This watch-dog post which is an independent public sector role is usually given to the holder for five years and it is not clear why Williams was given a one year contract. However, CNS understands that no open competitive recruitment process was undertaken prior to Williams’ first five year contract coming to an end.
The office recently celebrated its ten year anniversary and Williams is just the second person to hold that post. During that time complaints departments have been established in all government authorities but the OCC still sees a significant number of people coming to them as their complaints have not been handled properly by the relevant government entity.
Williams has also conducted a small number of own motion reports since taking office including one which revealed the extent of pension delinquency, the failure of the public sector management to protect whistle blowers as well as problems with occupational health and safety.
Afternoon GT home invasion
(CNS): Police are on the hunt for two armed men who robbed an apartment in the Windsor Park area on Friday afternoon at gun point. The home invasion took place at Quality Place Apartments on New Port Avenue in George Town just before 3 o’clock on 22 August in broad daylight and while the residents at the apartment were home. The two armed men demanded money and a phone before making their escape. Witnesses reported that both men were carrying silver handguns but no shots were fired and no one was injured during the robbery, police said. The men were said to be about 5’10 and 5’7 and one of the men, who had a light complexion, spoke with a Caymanian accent.
He had a slim build and was wearing a dark grey T- Shirt and dark blue ¾ jeans pants, with a black cloth covering his head, witnesses reported. The second suspect had a dark complexion and was of medium build wearing a grey T-shirt and ¾ black jeans pants, also with a black cloth covering his head.
Anyone with information regarding this incident is urged to contact the George Town Police Station CID on 949-4222 or Crime Stoppers at 800-8477 (TIPS)
Shots fired near West Bay restaurant
(CNS): Police have recovered a number of spent shells not far from Super C’s Restaurant in West Bay and are now looking for whoever it was that fired the weapon. At around 4:52am on Saturday, 911 received a call that gun shots had been heard on Watercourse Road. An RCIPS spokesperson said police units were sent to the location, where it was determined that the firearm had been discharged in the vicinity of the local restaurant where the spent shells were found. Police said that there were no reports of anyone being injured. Anyone with information is urged to contact the West Bay Police Station CID at 949 -3999 or CRIME STOPPERS at 800-8477 (TIPS)
Man’s body found at George Town apartments
(CNS): A 58-year-old man was found unconscious by his roommate hanging from a door in his George Town apartment on Friday night, police have said. 911 received the emergency call at around ten o’clock and emergency response units were sent to the scene, which was understood to be at the Lakeside Apartments, but medical personnel were unable to revive him and he was pronounced dead at 12:20am on his arrival at the hospital. Although it looks like the man took his own life, police said further enquiries are being carried out by the George Town CID.
Four Cubans stay in CI as another boat leaves
(CNS): A boat carrying some 40 Cuban migrants who arrived in Cayman Brac on Tuesday evening are understood to have now left local waters but four of the refugees opted to remain behind and are now awaiting repatriation by to Cuba. Immigration officials told CNS that 36 of the migrants elected to carry on their journey while three men and one women stayed in Cayman. (Photo by Simon Barwick)
The boat went from the Beac to Grand Cayman and the RCIPS Marine Unit accompanied the boat from East End to George Town harbour’s Hog Sty Bay where the migrants moved on and out of Cayman’s waters.
The 24 men and 12 women were crowded aboard the small vessel which appeared to have no shade to carry on their treacherous journey.