jamaica

Tropical Storm Melissa is stalling — and that’s what makes it dangerous.

The longer it sits over the Caribbean meteorologists say, the more rain it dumps — and the greater the risk it strengthens into a major hurricane.

Forecasts now show Melissa could reach Category 4 strength next week, powered by record-warm waters.

🔺 Jamaica is under a tropical storm warning, with outer winds expected within 24 hours.
🔺 Hurricane watches are up for Jamaica and parts of Haiti, where officials warn of flash floods and deadly mudslides.
🔺 Dominican Republic could also see days of heavy rain.

Right now, Jamaica appears to be in the center of Melissa’s path — and officials are urging residents to prepare early and stay alert as the storm strengthens.

Meteorologists say Melissa is already bringing heavy rain to parts of the Caribbean. Up to 10 inches of rain could fall, with isolated totals topping a foot across southern Haiti, southern Dominican Republic and eastern Jamaica through the weekend, according to CNN.

Jamaica’s two international airports will close in 24 hours as the country sit under a hurrican watch. For now, both the Sangster International Airport in Montego Bay and the Norman Manley International Airport (NMIA) in Kingston are operating as usual.

The bottom line:
Melissa’s slow movement could turn a tropical storm into a catastrophic hurricane, and time is running out to prepare.

CNN

Hurricane Beryl turned out to be a powerful storm, killing two people and leaving trails of destruction in southern Jamaica.

Powerlines were down and hundreds of residents were left homeless as Beryl churns toward the Cayman Islands and Mexico.

The Jamaica Constabulary Force told NBC News that a 26-year-old man was swept away in floodwaters in Kingston and it is trying to recover another man who too was swept away.

“He was playing football with friends at the mini stadium when the ball went outside, and he attempted to retrieve it,” police said.

Photos credit: Joe Raedle/Getty Images

The mother of the 22-year-old Jamaican woman killed on Friday night said her daughter was not a part of a gang but was a casualty of a gang war in the neighbourhood.

Mother Natanya Greene told Jamaican media that Tadasha Sears was standing on her porch at an apartment complex in Red Land Acres when a gunman killed her.

“It’s a gang-related incident…she was just innocently sitting on her mother’s couch on her tablet, she wasn’t no part of no gang”.

Greene told the Tribune she was at home when the shooting occurred after 11 pm. She said Sears came to her and said, “Mommy I got shot.” Greene then called emergency services and reassured her that she would be okay to which Greene replied, “Okay mommy.”

But she later died.

Green said she discovered her daughter was shot in the leg and stomach.

“This avenue right here is a target against (the) avenue down there. There’s a set of boys who are down there based in Pinewood. They have rival with boys that be up here on this hill,” she said.

“This is an open yard. I can’t tell people don’t come in the yard. When I’m in my room, I don’t know who is be out here. I don’t know what people be in this yard from all over.”

“So they came and when they came they didn’t see no males. So, they just walk up and open fire on her.”

Greene said officers offered her support. “They’ve been here and they are aggressively honest to bring who’s responsible [to justice]”.

Greene leaves behind a four-year-old daughter.

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge are set to arrive in the Bahamas today, the final leg of their Caribbean tour.  But many believe their visit is to strengthen the monarchy as some island nations consider removing Queen Elizabeth as head of state.

It’s been four months since Barbados became a republic following in the footsteps of Trinidad and Tobago, Guyana and Dominica.

Now Jamaica is in discussions to do the same. On Wednesday during Williams’ visit to the country, Prime Minister Andrew Holness told him “we’re moving on.”

“We intend to fulfill our true ambition of being an independent, fully developed and prosperous country.”

Before the visit, reports circulated that Holness had already given instructions to reform his country’s constitution to make the island-nation a republic.

Cries have become louder as more Caribbean nations express their willingness to abandon Britain while citizens have condemned its association with the slave trade and colonialism.

At the ceremony in Barbados marking the country’s transition, Williams’ father Prince Charles acknowledged the “appalling atrocity of slavery which forever stains our history.”

Though Barbados has become a republic, it still remains part of the Commonwealth nations.

The Queen’s youngest son, Prince Edward and his wife the Countess of Wessex will visit other Caribbean countries in April– Antigua and Barbuda, Grenada, St Lucia, and St Vincent and the Grenadines.

Photo credit: Belle on Twitter (The couple on a parade in Jamaica before leaving for the Bahamas)

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge board the RAF Voyager Plane for Jamaica this afternoon, where demonstrators are demanding reparations for the slavery sins of the royal family.

Prince William and wife Kate left Belize, bound for Jamaica the second stop of their Caribbean Tour.

Protesters held signs like, “Seh yuh sorry,” and “60 reasons to go back home” in front of the British High Commission in Kingston where organisers say the monarchy should apologize for “the exploitation of Jamaica, the transatlantic trafficking of Africans, the enslavement of Africans, indentureship and colonialization.”

The tour which began on Saturday, has spurred reaction from Caribbean people who believe the enslavement and colonialism of its people deserves acknowledgement by the Queen and her family who benefitted from its ‘blood, sweat and tears.’

Famous Jamaican musician Beenie Man told Good Morning Britain that his countrymen want nothing to do with the Queen because the British monarch has done nothing for the country.

“Jamaicans nuh want the queen, me can tell you that. Them nuh like be controlled by nobody. If Harry did deh yah, people would a react different, people would a go meet Harry. But William, nobody nuh want see that.”

He added: “We are just here, controlled by the British, ruled by the British law when you go in the court. It’s all about the Queen and the Queen this and the Queen that, but what are they doing for Jamaica? They are not doing anything for us.”

This comes after a small but similar protest in Belize happened where villagers asked William to leave the land which in dispute with an organization in which he is a patron.

The couple’s next stop is the Bahamas on Thursday.

Prince William and Kate’s Caribbean tour is causing more stir about colonialism and slavery.

As the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge set to travel to their next stop, Jamaica on Tuesday, after leaving Belize, some Jamaicans are planning to protest their arrival, calling for slavery reparations and apologies from the British family, and are refusing to participate in the Platinum Jubilee Celebration of Queen Elizabeth II.

The group, Advocates Network wrote an open letter to William and Kate, signed by one hundred prominent Jamaicans namely politicians, lawyers, songwriters, theologians and scholars.

The group attached 60 reasons why the royal family should apologize to Jamaica which include “the exploitation of Jamaica, the transatlantic trafficking of Africans, the enslavement of Africans, indentureship and colonialization.”

The protest is expected to take place on Tuesday at the British High Commission in Kingston.

Jamaica says it is in talks to remove Queen Elizabeth as Head of State. This comes after Barbados became a republic, distancing itself from the monarchy in November.

Prince William and Kate canceled a trip to a farm in Belize after villagers resented their arrival on land in dispute with a group in which William is a patron.

The Opposition in Jamaican Parliament led by Mark Golding, says though it will participate in the celebration, the British monarch needs to “make an authentic and profound apology for the role played by their family in the Slave Trade, chattel slavery and the plantation system, and also for a public acknowledgment that they benefited from it.”

William and Kate will be in Jamaica from March 22 to 24.

• The Bahamas government has already purchased 40 new cars  and rented out five floors of Atlantis for the royal family

Prince William and his wife Kate are on their way to the Bahamas to mark their grandmother Queen Elizabeth II’s 70 years on the British throne.

Clint Watson, Press Secretary in the Office of the Prime Minister claims it has not yet been determined how much the trip will cost Bahamian taxpayers.

Watson said he sought to find out how much the royal visit will cost, but could not get that information.

“They’re still waiting on a number of figures to come in so they don’t have that figure for us,” he said.

How do you not know? The Royal Family is not haphazard in their approach when traveling for royal duties. Royal trips are planned months or up to one year in advance.  An itinerary is planned based on the personal interest of the royal family and matters the host country would like to publicize.

A team from the royal family travels to the destination to organize the mechanisms of the trip—from travel time, dress code, camera angles, and the best place for the royal procession to arrive.

The Royal Protection Services Officers also visit the host country to plan security details and to coordinate with local police.

A tour document is created, showing the venue plan, the cultural requirements, where everyone will sit, stand, enter and exit along with the list of people the royals will meet.

CSJ Report understands that the Bahamas government has purchased 40 new cars for the royal family and rented out five floors of the Atlantis Resort for the couple and their aids—one floor for residency and four empty floors below it for security purposes.

The Bahamas will pay for accommodations, meals, and the couple’s staff.

Jamaica claims it will only pay for security personnel and nothing else when the couple arrives there before traveling to the Bahamas.

Kensington Palace said Kate 40, and William 39, are “very much looking forward to the visit.”

Their first stop is Belize, where they will visit the Maya archaeological sites and celebrate the culture of the Garifuna community.

In Jamaica, the royals will meet with members of the Jamaican military; and celebrate the heritage of Bob Marley and other Jamaican musicians.

Their last stop is the Bahamas where they will travel to Parliament Square in New Providence, where they will be entertained with Junkanoo, then travel to the islands affected by Hurricane Dorian–Abaco and Grand Bahama.

“As with previous overseas visits, The Duke and Duchess have asked that this tour allows them to meet as many local people as possible,” the palace said, which include children, youths, COVID-19 frontline workers, philanthropic leaders, conservationists and childcare workers.

Photo credit: Getty Images

As the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge set to tour a group of Commonwealth nations, the Bahamas and Jamaica are taking a different stance on footing the bill for the royals.

Prince William and wife Kate Middleton will spend a week in the Bahamas, Jamaica and Belize to celebrate Queen Elizabeth’s 70 years on the throne.

The Bahamas will fully pay for accommodations, meals, and the couples’ understaff. However, Jamaica will not pay for the visit, only for “some costs” of the tour such as security details, insisting it would not pay for anything else.

Permanent Secretary in the office of the Governor-General in the Bahamas, Jack Thompson insisted, “It is customary for the host country to absorb the cost.”

Clint Watson, Press Secretary in the Office of the Prime Minister, says the amount of money the Bahamas will spend for the tour is still being determined, as the couple sets to visit Abaco, Grand Bahama, and Parliament Square for a cultural show.

Some Bahamians have taken to social media to express disapproval in footing the bill. Nick Rock tweeted, “You mean we have to absorb it? Take out my part.”

Someone else tweeted, “You can’t change the mentality of the people who grew up in that era.”

This will be the first visit to the Caribbean for the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge.

The tour will begin on March 19 starting with Belize, onto Jamaica, and will end in the Bahamas on March 26.

Jamaican Dancehall Artist Dexta Daps expected to hold a concert this weekend in New Providence and Grand Bahama, with more than 2000 concert goers.

But plans were squashed when the Ministry of Health and Wellness disapproved of the size and denied a request for the event, citing COVID-19 risks.

While many Bahamians are expressing anger over the cancellation, some Bahamians are puzzled and are asking, “Who is Dexta Daps?”

1. He is a 36-year-old, Jamaican native, living in New York City.
2. Dexta Daps was born Louis Grandison and is known for dancehall music and ballads.  He is known for his smooth vocals and provocative lyrics.
3. His hits include the ballad Morning Love, 7Eleven, Shabba Madda Pot and Breaking Point.
4. He has positioned himself as a sex symbol, and most of his ballads depict intimate lovers.
5. In 2020, Dexta Daps was locked up for one month, under the state of public emergency. He was questioned about gang-related activities and was released without charge.
6. In September 2021, he made headlines for disregarding COVID-19 protocols at a sold-out, tightly packed concert in New York City.

Listen here for some of his music: Dexta Daps Music

Following the death of hotel mogul Gordon “Butch” Stewart, Prime Minister Hubert Minnis remembered him as “a loyal son of the Caribbean, who delighted in the extraordinary potential and breathtaking beauty of the region.”

Minnis said Gordon was a “great friend and lover of the Islands of the Bahamas and the Bahamian people.”

Gordon established the Sandals Resort at a time “when the Bahamas was looking for investors to acquire government-owned hotels.”

“Gordon significantly and immediately added to the number of rooms and employees of the resort and the reputation of the Bahamas,” he said.

Minnis added, “Gordon “Butch” Stewart “Stewart was an intrepid innovator. He was the ultimate dreamcatcher who was happy to listen to the ideas of others and to change his mind when inspired or enthused by the dreams and ideas of others.

“His commitment to the region was manifest in the economic impact of his properties throughout the region, including his resorts in the Bahamas at Sandals Royal Bahamian on New Providence and at Fowl Cay and Emerald Bay in the Exumas.”

Minnis said Gordon was enthusiastic about the extraordinary potential of the Caribbean and often, remarked about the untapped potential of the Bahamas.

Gordon died in hospital on Monday. He was 79-years-old.