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The Tribune Established 1903
Volume:117 No.83, MARCH 20TH, 2020
Weekend
WEEKEND: FROM HEALTH WOES TO MARRIAGE VOWS
THE PEOPLE’S PAPER: $1 art books fashion music
Weekend
PM puts nation in lockdown to stamp out virus By RASHAD ROLLE Tribune Senior Reporter rrolle@tribunemedia.net PRIME Minister Dr Hubert Minnis announced that a national curfew will take effect today, mandating people remain in their homes until March 31 between 9pm and 5am and that business operations, with few exceptions, be suspended. He said the emergency order, a radical restriction on personal and business freedoms that will upend life in The Bahamas, was needed to prevent the spread of the highly contagious novel
coronavirus. The order takes effect at 9am today, and will expire at 9am March 31. Dr Minnis said the curfew will end after consultation with medical professionals. He gave the order a day after presenting sweeping emergency COVID-19 powers in the House of Assembly. Attorney General Carl Bethel, explaining what compliance with the curfew must entail, said: “Persons should be in their homes, if their homes are affixed to the soil in some matter, they may go in the immediate SEE PAGE FIVE
ATLANTIS ‘GHOST TOWN’ - BUT NOT SHUT DOWN By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net ATLANTIS last night denied reports that the resort had been completely shut down. A spokesperson told The Tribune that “Atlantis still has guests and we are taking each day as it comes”. However, an insider at the resort, speaking on condition of anonymity, said that Coral Towers and Beach Towers had been closed due to the lack of guests, and all remaining visitors are
being accommodated in the Royal Towers. The source said: “This is just the beginning. I wouldn’t be surprised if there’s temporary layoffs. It is literally dead here. It’s a ghost town. Many restaurants are closed. The beaches are empty.” The news comes as Bahamians were told they must shed the “culture of non-compliance” as “the best way” to minimise COVID-19’s projected $1bn blow to the national economy. FULL STORY - SEE BUSINESS
PRIME Minister Dr Hubert Minnis speaking during yesterday’s press conference. Photo: Yontalay Bowe/BIS
MUSIC ICON SAYS GOODBYE Page 8 & 9
Vow to love
Living through good times and
11-DAY CURFEW
Friday, March 20, 2020
history food entertainmen t gardening
challenging ones
pages 14 & 15
COVID-19: LATEST NEWS • GOVT TO FUND BILLS DEFERRAL •RETIRED POLICE AND DEFENCE MAY BE CALLED UP • DAVIS SAYS PROVISIONS ARE RUSHED • NURSES TO BE TAKEN ON IMMEDIATELY • US WARNS ALL CITIZENS: DON’T TRAVEL • POLICE READY FOR ANY THREAT IN CRISIS • SLOWDOWN FOR DORIAN REBUILD
RECEIVER TAKES OVER NYGARD FIRMS By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net
PETER Nygard’s global fashion empire has been plunged into financial crisis after court-appointed receivers this week took over its affairs following recent sex trafficking allegations against the tycoon. The claims against the Lyford Cay resident, which he has vehemently denied, were cited by the Nygard
PETER NYGARD Group’s lenders as a key factor behind their decision to successfully petition the
courts for the appointment of a receiver over business interests has has spent decades building. Two US-based financiers, White Oak Commercial Finance and Second Avenue Capital Partners, are alleging in court papers that Mr Nygard’s fashion empire breached the conditions of a $40m loan agreement by failing to promptly disclose the lawsuit where ten girls made allegations of rape SEE PAGE SEVEN
Nassau & Bahama Islands’ Leading Newspaper
COOL HEADS AND HOPEFULLY NO FEVERED BROWS
SEE PAGE EIGHT
PAGE 2, Friday, March 20, 2020
THE TRIBUNE
Order implements curfew EMERGENCY POWERS (COVID 19) (NO. 1) ORDER, 2020 In exercise of the powers conferred on me by regulation 14 of the Emerency Powers (Covid 19) Regulations, 2020, I HEREBY make the following Order: 1. Citation and duration. (1) This Order may be cited as the Emergency Powers (Covid 19)(No. 1) Order, 2020. (2) This Order shall come into force at 9am on the 20th day of March, 2020 and shall expire at 9am on the 31st day of March, 2020. 2. Curfew. A curfew is hereby imposed extending each night from 9pm to 5am with such exception as may approved by the Commissioner of Police. 3. Imposition of orders. For every island and cay of the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, for a period of 11 days commencing the 20th day of March, 2020 — (1) All establishments, institutions, businesses, offices, stores and organisations shall suspend operations to the general public except for the following — (i) wholesale or retail grocery stores and Farmers’ Markets from 6am to 5pm; (ii) doctor’s offices, hospitals or medical facilities; (iii) pharmacies from 6am to 5pm; (iv) gas stations from 6am to 5pm; (v) medical supply establishments; (vi) hotels;
The government of The Bahamas yesterday ordered a curfew and strict regulations on movement and business opening in an effort to restrict the spread of the coronavirus, COVID-19. Here, we present the full details of the order, as presented by Prime Minister Dr Hubert Minnis. (vii) banks from 9am to 5pm; (viii) commercial ports and related businesses from 6am to 5pm; (ix) airports; (x) laundromats and wash houses for hygenic purposes from 6am to 5pm; (xi) drive thru or take away food vendors from 6am to 7:30pm; (xii) construction companies carrying out any construction work from 6am to 7pm. (xiii) such other businesses or undertakings as may be specficially exempted in writing by the Competent Authority, Provided that the owner or operator of the establishment specified in (i) – (xiii) restrict the number of customers inside their place of business at any one time so that each customer is enabled to distance himself at least three to six feet (3-6ft) from any other person. Every person in such establishment or business must distance themselves from other persons at a minimum of three to six (3-6ft) feet from any other such person. (2) No person shall host or attend — (i) a private party which includes any person from outside of the immediate household of the house occupant;
(ii) a recreational or competitive sporting event; (iii) a wedding which hosts ten or more persons other than the bride, bridegroom, official witnesses and the marriage officer; (iv) a banquet, ball or reception; (v) any social event; (vi) a funeral, except ten members of the immediate family and at least one officiant and essential mortuary staff; or (vii) a meeting of a fraternal society, private or social club or civic association or organization. (3) No person shall offer for hire or seek to travel on any — (i) public bus transportation; (ii) mail boat, sailing inter island, except for transport of freight; or (iii) inter island private commercial sea transport that is non- essential; Provided that the Competent Authority may vary any of the requirements above by Order. (4) No person shall visit any place of quarantine or isolation station. (5) No person shall be permitted to visit any detainee in a correctional facility nor more than one person at any time shall visit a patient in a hospital or residential care establishment or facility.
A SHOPPER getting products at Super Value yesterday.
AMPLE stocks in the vegetable island in Super Value yesterday. Photos: Terrel W Carey Sr/Tribune Staff
THE TRIBUNE
Friday, March 20, 2020, PAGE 3
across The Bahamas
DEMAND for some products has seen empty shelves in some areas - but there are still plenty of stocks nationwide. (6) Subject to the provi- worship or other activity by sions of this Order, every electronic or virtual means; person shall remain in the (d) prohibit individual confines of their dwelling attendance at a church for home, inclusive of their private individual prayer yard space. while maintaining social I HEREBY further order distancing. that — (8) Subject to paragraph (7) Nothing in this Order 3(1) herein, all other estabshall — lishments, institutions, (a) affect the function businesses or offices incluby essential officers of the sive of the Public Service The Royal Bahamas Police (as may be authorised by Force, The Royal Bahamas the respective Permanent Defence Force, Fire Ser- Secretary) shall work from vices, the Department of home and such estabCorrectional Services, the lishments, institutions, National Insurance Board, businesses or offices shall the Department of Social maintain only essential Services, the Department staff for the performance of of Environmental Health core functions while adherServices, the Department ing at all times to social of Immigration, the Cus- distancing as prescribed toms Department, waste above. and sanitational workers, (9) Any person, company and staff within any hospi- or organisation who contal or health care or medical travenes any order given facility; herein is liable upon sum(b) affect the function mary conviction to a fine by essential officers of any not exceeding ten thouwater, electricity or other sand dollars or to a term of sector encompassing the imprisonment not exceedprovision of electronic com- ing eighteen months or to munications including print both. and electronic media; Made this day of March (c) prohibit religious or 19, 2020, educational instruction, PRIME MINISTER
DAVIS: ORDER WAS DONE IN A RUSH PLP LEADER Philip “Brave” Davis criticised an emergency order issued by Prime Minister Hubert Minnis yesterday, saying the provisions appeared to be rushed. He said the prohibitions outlined in the order including a national curfew and the suspension of business operations with few exceptions - may adversely impact the public. “Yesterday our party urged the government to proceed with caution in the exercise of the powers under the state of emergency,” Mr Davis said at PLP headquarters. “It is our view that these measures must be for the benefit of Bahamian people. We are concerned that this was all done in a heated rush and may have unintended consequences adverse to the public. “I also pointed out (Wednesday) that there was no evidence that the Bahamian people needed
to be coerced into following directives and protocols promulgated by the government.” He added: “It is a matter of regret that the prime minister promulgated these measures to which we have not had an opportunity to lend our voice and to provide our views on the appropriate initiatives.” He said the measures outlined by the nation’s leader are “contradictory” and may impose more challenges than providing solutions that will protect people. He questioned why construction sites will remain open, for instance, adding that in such a hazardous industry, it is unlikely people can remain three to six feet apart as suggested. He also questioned why hotels are allowed to remain open. And with the public transportation industry ordered to shut down, many
PROGRESSIVE Liberal Party Leader Philip Davis. Photo: Terrel W Carey Sr/Tribune Staff essential workers will find it difficult to get to work, he said. “Also just as ten members can attend a church service (for a wedding or funeral), why can’t ten people attend a civic organisation meeting? At the end of business hours, all of these people will go home
to their families, how will this stop the spread of the virus?” Mr Davis urged the government to begin widespread COVID-19 testing in order to act on empirical evidence. He also advised the public to follow advice from health care professionals.
PAGE 4, Friday, March 20, 2020
THE TRIBUNE
Bahamian in isolation at university in the US By FARRAH JOHNSON fjohnson@tribunemedia.net A BAHAMIAN student studying in Pennsylvania is currently in self-isolation at her university, which has taken preventative measures to ensure that students that couldn’t return home remain safe during the COVID-19 pandemic. Pennsylvania has more than 100 confirmed cases of the disease. In an effort to deter the spread of COVID-19, thousands of universities have cancelled on-campus learning and ordered students to leave. Anita Williams, who is enrolled at Lincoln University of Pennsylvania, told The Tribune although her university cancelled all “face-to-face” classes, they allowed students with “special circumstances” to remain on campus. Still, she said the institution has implemented
a number of preventative measures to ensure that students who stayed behind remain safe. “Basically face-to-face classes were suspended for the rest of the semester and all of my classmates were expected to be home last Sunday,” she said. “Because I’m an international student, I was allowed to stay on campus but my travel has to be very limited. I can only go to the food store just to get important stuff and I can’t leave the state.” She added that her school has also limited how many times the students can go on and off campus. “All of the students who stayed had to move to the same building on the same floor, so they can keep all of us together just in case something happens,” she explained. “We have minimal travel, and travel on and off campus is restricted to urgent emergencies. We
By TANYA SMITHCARTWRIGHT ts-cartwright@tribunemedia.net
a manner that is amenable to them. But, to say that the courts of the house of God’s doors should be closed, to me, is a little far-fetched. I struggle as to how we can come to that place without any kind of trepidation.” Pastor Morrison said Zion’s doors will not only be open to those of the Baptist faith, but to people from all denominations whose churches have suspended services. Last Sunday, Pastor Mario Moxey of Bahamas Harvest Church, told his congregation that it would be the last service for a while. The Bahamas Christian Council met on Tuesday to discuss the suspension of services and related events. “We have cancelled worship experiences and church activities for the time being,” Pastor Moxey said. “Our members think it’s the responsible thing to do and we are all in agreement with this. No date has been set as yet for us to resume, but we have prepared for four weeks. “We have (contended), up to the end of April, that we can deliver to our congregation. It hurts on the front end to suspend the services but on the back end it’s a success as it will help keep us safe.” Bishop Simeon Hall of New Covenant Baptist Church, has donned a mask since he learned of confirmed cases in The Bahamas. “My home is heaven, but I am not homesick,” Bishop Hall noted. “I stand in agreement with the church and government on this
were also told to practice social distancing and to avoid contact with other people as much as possible.” Ms Williams added that while she isn’t “necessarily panicked,” she has had trouble trying to purchase certain supplies. “My school is in a very small town, so I don’t really feel that much fear compared to being in a big city like New York where everything is like hustle and bustle,” she said. “But a lot of the food has been running out. I was just lucky enough to buy cases of water and some canned goods to last me. We had to go to three different stores just to find water. That’s the main thing, people are really buying out everything in the stores. “They were all out of toilet paper and tissue as well. Luckily, we were able to ask the janitor for some from their storage. “Right now cleaning
products are extremely hard to find, but luckily I had cleaning supplies that I bought before the outbreak, so I’m just monitoring what I have right now.” Ms Williams said while she is concerned about the rising cases of the virus in her state, she is taking the necessary precautions to keep herself safe. She also said that she plans to return home on April 17, once the spring semester ends. “I am nervous the borders may close so I’m just staying updated with both the US news and the Bahamas news,” she said. “The lucky thing is, these decisions aren’t immediate. They usually tell you by a certain date you can’t come in. So if that’s the case and The Bahamas decides to close its borders, or the airport where I’m at now decides to close down, I’m just going to book a ticket right away. “I have my stuff packed
ZION BAPTIST STAYS OPEN THE doors of Zion Baptist Church will remain open for worship despite the social distancing suggestions from government, Senior Pastor T G Morrison told The Tribune yesterday. A day earlier, Prime Minister Dr Hubert Minnis announced that religious leaders had agreed to cancel church services and related events in an effort to prevent the spread of the COVID19 virus. The suspension is scheduled to end in April. However, the Shirley Street church is not complying. “The doors of Zion will be open,” Pastor Morrison said. “The church is a place of refuge. I have a fundamental struggle to see the courts of the house of God closed, even in hurricanes the houses of worship are used as shelters. “Without any form of theological discernment, you just shut the doors of the courts of the house of God? The health officials say shut them, so you just shut them, but we believe a man was dead for three days and rose again from the dead. I have a serious struggle with this. “This does not mean that I do not appreciate or accept that there is a point where social responsibility is necessary, neither do I dispense with the notion that persons whose health is compromised or the evidence suggests that their health is in jeopardy should not exercise their freedom or faith in
issue. We must be responsible. The underlying goal is to limit the social contact with one another and to keep each other healthy. There is nothing wrong with suspending services for a few weeks in order to control the spread of this virus. “There are mechanical ways to keep in touch with the congregation and other ways to interact for the time being. Our ultimate goal right now is to save life. And if we can do that, then we have accomplished what the church is supposed to do.” LaGloria Davis, of Christ Church Cathedral, said she is a little disappointed that she will not be attending church on Sunday, but understands ‘safety first’. “I look at it as a safety measure and I just hope that persons would adhere to what the health professions are advising. We need to stay home as much as possible. “I am a little disappointed in the suspension of services, but I will take the time to watch services on TV. (Anglican Bishop Laish Boyd) did say he would hold mass in the chapel at the diocese office and it would be live streamed. “I think that social distancing is very important to stop the spread of this virus. We need to adhere to that and see how best we can contain it so that we can return to life as we know it.” Some church leaders have advised members with weddings and funerals to hold small events where social distancing is observed.
ANITA WILIAMS up in the event I need to supportive in this situation,” leave immediately, because she continued. “With a lot my biggest fear is being in of other schools everyone the US and having no way had to leave, but my school definitely took into account of getting back home.” Ms Williams added that the fact that everyone just she is aware that Bahamian can’t pick up and leave.” “Me being on campus kind students studying in countries with confirmed cases of feels like I’m in my own of the virus will have to be world in a sense. If I’m not quarantined upon return- on social media then I really ing. Still, she said she is don’t know what’s going on prepared for that scenario because my campus is very and confident that she will calm and quiet.” Up to press time, there remain safe during the were 185 confirmed cases in outbreak. “My university has been Pennsylvania.
THE EMPTY Straw Market yesterday.
BUSINESSES: CHANGING STAFFING IS LAST RESORT By KHRISNA RUSSELL Tribune Chief Reporter krussell@tribunemedia.net
DESPITE a sharp slump in sales due to the COVID19 threat, some businesses in New Providence told The Tribune adjusting staffing in any way is a last resort. For now, a wait and see approach is being taken, three local retailers said. They spoke to The Tribune ahead of Prime Minister Dr Hubert Minnis announcing a national curfew beginning today until March 31. The curfew is from 9pm to 5am. Under additional emergency measures announced by Dr Minnis yesterday, all businesses, offices and
stores except those listed as exempt are to remain closed. “I am going to keep my staff as long as I can,” Sandy’s Limited owner Jack Moree said when he was contacted yesterday. Mr Moree said this week he began seeing sales fall off, but he is determined to keep his four locations open. “We are getting some crumbs here and there and this started this week. We got some people with a bunch of kids coming in the store, breaking up the store. They are not keeping kids away from anything and I have no intention right now of closing unless the government puts a curfew or says for everyone to close. “That’s the only way that I am going to do it.” However, Mr Moree told this newspaper he could only hope for the best. “It’s going to be a horrible year business-wise especially because everything is done out of China and that’s at a standstill so we just got to wait and see what happens. I am prepared to do whatever I am told to do. “If any of my staff gets ill, I’ll tell them to stay their tails home, but until then I see no reason to close down. I am keeping my staff as long as I can. If they go I am going to tell them they all have vacations set but that’s going to have to change if we have to close so that they can have some money, you know? “I got to pay them for the holidays but I can’t close down and not pay them and so it’s a change for everybody in the world but if that is the case whose not on vacation will have to go on vacation and they’ll get paid for the vacation and leave. “Hopefully it’ll be over in the next couple of months, but that’s all we can do is hope.” For Marlin Marine and Bayshore Marina, business is virtually “non-existent”. Loran Pyfrom, general manager, said the executive team has a plan that outlines what it’ll do if things get worse, but he is hoping it doesn’t get that far. “Our executive team has
put a plan together that if necessary we’ll roll out in steps. It’s pretty much what everybody else is already doing, but I wanted to give it a little bit longer and a little chance. “We have been lucky enough to be doing fairly well before so we want to try and keep the employees for as long as we can and what I have noticed is that people seem to be working harder and it’s giving us a little bit of time to catch up on some things that we maybe had neglected and I see the staff coming together and consciously tying up the loose ends, but if things do not change in the near future we are going to have to start rolling out those steps. “…Asking people to take vacation leave (or) reduced hours and then of course we don’t want to. We value everybody but if we have to lay off we would start with temporary lay offs and just keep assessing the situation.” Employees are valuable, a manager at A G Electric said. The manager there said staff have been assisted to make things easier under the circumstances that the coronavirus has created. “We implemented from last week additional safety measures for our staff in terms of disinfectants and gloves. We are not wearing masks and those have been taken well by the customer even last week when we started with the gloves,” the manager said. The store was planning on reducing hours ahead of Dr Minnis’ curfew announcement. The store’s owners had considered completely closing, but ultimately decided not to. “We are not planning to lay anyone off and the staff have been very much in agreement with the decision that we made and presented yesterday and we even offered them going home if they feel like it’s unsafe. “No one volunteered and we felt good about the fact that they felt comfortable with the measures that we currently have in place and the fact that they can continue to work.”
THE TRIBUNE
Friday, March 20, 2020, PAGE 5
11-day curfew from page one area in their yard but not if it’s an open yard over to someone else’s home and not to mingle with any occupant of any other house unless the yard is enclosed.” The penalty for breaking the order is a fine not exceeding $10,000 upon summary conviction or imprisonment for not more than 18 months or both. Establishments, institutions, businesses, offices, stores and organisations will have to suspend operations to the general public under the prime minister’s order. Exemptions include: wholesale or retail grocery stores and farmers markets; pharmacies, gas stations, laundromats and wash houses for hygienic purposes from 6am to 5pm; banks from 9am to 5pm; construction companies doing construction work from 6am to 7pm; drive through or takeaway food vendors from 6am to 7.30pm, doctors offices, hospitals or medical facilities, medical supply establishments, hotels and airports. All other establishments, institutions, businesses or offices inclusive of the public service —as may be authorised by the respective permanent secretary — shall work from home. The order states that these places “shall maintain only essential staff for the performance of core functions while adhering at all times to social distancing” of
THE PRESS conference yesterday with Prime Minister Dr Hubert Minnis speaking. three to six feet. other than the bride, bride- of Environmental Health Asked to clarify, Mr groom, official witnesses Services, the Department Bethel said: “Any business and the marriage officer of Immigration, the Custhat caters to the general and funerals except ten toms Department, waste public, so the public can just members of the immedi- and sanitation workers and walk in, is a business that if ate family and at least one staff within any hospital or not specifically exempted, officiant and essential mor- health care or medical facilthat business needs to work tuary staff. ity are not affected by the from home.” People will not be order. People will be disallowed allowed to travel via public Essential officers of from entering private par- buses or mail boats, except water, electricity or other ties that include people for transport of freight or sectors encompassing the from outside the immediate inter-island private com- provision of electronic household of the house’s mercial sea transport that is communications, including occupant and from attend- non-essential. print and electronic media, ing meetings of fraternal Essential officers of the are also not affected by the societies, private or social Royal Bahamas Police order. clubs or civic associations. Force, Royal Bahamas Dr Minnis also said the People will also be barred Defence Force, Fire Ser- government has recomfrom recreational or com- vices, Department of mended to Bahamas Power petitive sporting events, Correctional Services, & Light that it defer paysocial events, banquets, National Insurance Board, ment of bills for an initial receptions, weddings host- the Department of Social period of three months for ing ten or more people Services, the Department residential customers who
are diagnosed with the virus, are in quarantine or have been laid off. The government will cover the cost of those bills, he said. Dr Minnis said people who contravene the orders will be arrested. He said trucks and personnel working with gas stations have already been exempted from the curfew by the commissioner of police. Mr Bethel also told reporters that security firms and bakeries will be exempted from the orders. The order does not prohibit individual attendance at a church for private individual prayer while maintaining social distancing.
Photos: Yontalay Bowe/BIS Dr Minnis said the Doctors Hospital facility on Blake Road is being secured for COVID-19. “There are some who may be concerned, what may happen if a patient is COVID positive and on dialysis, I can assure you that such facility has (a) dialysis machine in place should the need arise,” he said. Dr Minnis said nurses who have completed their training and examinations will be appointed immediately to boost frontline staff. He also stressed there was adequate food, medical supplies and fuel in the country. He said ports remain open for freight and cargo and the country’s airports will remain open as well.
things come to an end, and this crisis will also end,” he said Wednesday. Dr Minnis’ comments came after he announced that confirmed COVID-19 cases in the country had risen to three. He said the two new cases are household members of the first person to test positive for COVID-19, a 61-year-old woman.
There are more than 140,000 people infected with the disease worldwide. Nearly 10,000 people have died from COVID-19 since it emerged in late 2019, but more than 80,000 have reportedly recovered. Health Minister Dr Duane Sands has said the number of coronavirus cases is expected to increase in the coming days.
DAMES: WE’LL DEAL WITH CRIME DURING CRISIS By LEANDRA ROLLE Tribune Staff Reporter lrolle@tribunemedia.net
AS fears continue to mount over the COVID-19 pandemic, National Security Minister Marvin Dames assured yesterday that law enforcement agencies “are ready” to deal with whatever crime threats that may occur during the crisis. “We always prepare ahead for crises,” he told The Tribune. “So, we will be ready for anything, all of our agencies. This is a national effort so whenever you have a situation like this, we all understand what our respective roles are so all of our agencies have a plan and we’ve had one.” Mr Dames did not elaborate on what those plans are, but he said officials will be implementing strategies to assure the safety of all Bahamians. “We expect those plans are being implemented so
NATIONAL Security Minister Marvin Dames. Bahamians have no concerns. We will maintain security. We will do what we have to do to ensure that Bahamians are safe, and Bahamians are safe. “So, we’re ready. We’re more than ready.” His comments came after Prime Minister Dr Hubert Minnis declared the country is “at war” with the novel coronavirus, saying new regulations granting him sweeping emergency powers over the Bahamian
society are needed to save lives. “The new emergency measures we are enacting are to save lives and to protect our country and only those that are against such measures are not interested in lives nor are they interested in their country,” he said in the House of Assembly on Wednesday, a day after Governor General Cornelius Smith issued a proclamation of emergency. Under the regulations, the
prime minister may prohibit the assembly of two or more persons in a public place in any area specified in the interest of public health safety. The regulations, among other measures, also give the prime minister the power to institute a curfew, ordering everyone within an area to remain indoors between specified hours. It would also be a crime to publish or cause to be published in traditional media or social media, information that the person knows or suspects to be false. It is not clear when Dr Minnis will issue orders under the new strict regulations. However, he has pledged to do all in his power to protect the Bahamian people. He said while the new measures will be painful for the country, such policies are important in order to prevent the spread of the virus. “We have a country and a generation to save. It is going to be difficult, but all
CIBC TO HELP CLIENTS ‘CASE BY CASE’ CIBC FirstCaribbean says the bank is committed to working with its clients to offer special assistance on a case-by-case basis for those adversely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. “This could include deferred payments; special loan financing and other concessions aimed at helping clients cushion the financial impact of the pandemic on households and businesses across the region,” according to a
statement from the bank. Chief Executive Officer Colette Delaney said the bank was “very conscious of the financial dislocation which the ongoing COVID-19 event will have on our clients across all segments of our business and we are moving to mitigate the effects as best as we can.” She noted that the special assistance being offered was crucial to ensure confidence and stability in the regional banking sector as
it weathered this difficult period. Ms Delaney urged CIBC FirstCaribbean clients who may be experiencing challenges to reach out to the bank to see what assistance could be offered to them. She noted that the bank is committed to offering eligible clients flexible financial solutions including: six-month payment moratoriums on existing loans and mortgages; temporary revolving or working capital financing options
for corporate banking and business banking clients. Clients experiencing financial challenges should contact the bank by phone or email. A list of email addresses are on the bank’s website at https://www.cibcfcib.com/ covid-19. “We also recommend clients to visit us online, at www.cibcfcib.com/locations to find additional contact information for CIBC FirstCaribbean offices in each territory,” the bank said.
WASHINGTON Associated Press
the issuance of passports to US citizens. The department yesterday issued a new travel alert urging Americans not to go abroad under any circumstances and to return home if they are already abroad unless they plan to remain overseas. It then said passport applications for US citizens at home and abroad would be severely curtailed. “The Department of State advises US citizens
to avoid all international travel due to the global impact of COVID-19,” it said in the new advice. “In countries where commercial departure options remain available, US citizens who live in the United States should arrange for immediate return to the United States, unless they are prepared to remain abroad for an indefinite period. US citizens who live abroad should avoid all
international travel.” Until the upgrade, the department’s advice to US citizens was to “reconsider” all international travel under what is known as a “level three” alert. The global “level four” warning was unprecedented as such alerts are generally reserved for specific countries embroiled in conflict, natural disasters or where Americans face specific risks.
US WARNS ‘DON’T TRAVEL’ THE Trump administration has upgraded its already dire warning to Americans against all international travel as the coronavirus outbreak spreads. At the same time, the State Department disclosed the first positive cornovirus test in a Washington-based employee and announced new restrictions
PAGE 6, Friday, March 20, 2020
THE TRIBUNE
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It’s a virus, do as the doctor says ON Wednesday, Prime Minister Dr Hubert Minnis unveiled regulations that gave him powers to tackle the spread of the coronavirus. Yesterday, he used them. We asked in yesterday’s editorial “What now?” Well, we got our answer. This has been a decisive move by Dr Minnis to impose a curfew across the country, and while we are sure there is criticism of him by some, the motive behind it is clear: to preserve the nation’s health. It will be tough, but we only need to look around the world to see the danger this virus presents. Last night, the governor of California estimated that more than half of Californians – 56 percent, or a total of 25.5 million people – will test positive for the coronavirus within two months. Yesterday, the death toll in Italy overtook the number in China as the country struggled to deal with a combination of a virus out of control and a significant elderly population. Yet there is also hope. The city of Wuhan, where the virus first emerged three months ago, had no new infections – a sign that the lockdowns imposed there had worked. Korea has used widespread testing to identify and isolate cases and they have reduced the impact of the virus across their nation. That is the reason for taking the drastic action of imposing a curfew – and we should, in good heart, comply for the sake of all of us. Don’t just follow the new rules, embrace them. Make sure that the trips you make really are only essential ones. Businesses, do all you can to minimise the risk of your staff and whatever you
can do to help them work from home, do so. Do what you need to do to get by, and those things you don’t need to do? They can wait. Stay home. Keep your family home. Don’t give this virus the slightest encouragement. When this has passed, we will have the opportunity to start to help our nation recover. But to do that first, we have to stifle the virus. The sooner we stop it from harming our people, the sooner we can start to help our nation. So hunker down, follow the restrictions, and let’s try to follow the path of the likes of Korea in flattening the curve of this virus, rather than the nations now feeling its scourge. Stay put. Tell your family and friends to stay put. If you see someone boasting about going out or saying they’re going to a party regardless, shame them. Tell them what they’re doing might not hurt them, but it might hurt their country. You may need a little daylight from time to time. You can use your yard. And if you need to walk the dogs and so on, we’re told that’s fine outside of curfew hours. But don’t do it if you don’t need to - and practice social distancing if you do. The goal is to stop gatherings - so the virus can’t jump to a new patient. Stay away from others when you’re out, so they can’t give you the virus and you can’t give it to them. Simple as that. There are heartrending stories starting to come through of whole families devastated by the virus and all because they met up for a dinner party or at a gathering. Don’t let that happen to us. Close your door, follow the news, and when the curfews are over, come out ready to fight to put things right.
READERS HAVE THEIR SAY ON CORONAVIRUS RESPONSE READERS have been having their say on the coronavirus response on www. tribune242.com. ThisIsOurs said: “Thankfully they’re bringing in retired officers. Not sure all are competent but I’d be happy to see Stephen Dean on the front lines again.” VDSheep said: “The government curfew is good! However it’s elementary when threats are not from Bahamians. Threats are from foreigners coming into the country. Most country around the world has closed their borders - we need to do so too, dam if we do and dam if we don’t, close our border!” Snonkai added: “Most infections are coming from people returning to their country now. Is the same stupid thing Trump is doing. EVERYBODY JUST STAY PUT. Btw, at last politicians are stepping aside to let experts speak. Thank you for clarity Ms Forbes!” Tal Russel was critical, saying: “Another ill-thought-out reaction by this government! Stupid, stupid!! Really, persons must be locked away in their home during the curfew hours? There are still many workers that have no other option than to go back and forth between the hours 9pm and 5am. We still have tourists in Colony? Neither the PM, nor his AG, said if the curfew is Colony-wide? What are the Homeless and the Mentally Impaired persons to do imprison them too?” Joeblow was another
advocating restriction of access to the country, saying: “…its kinda stupid to allow people to travel into the country from affected countries WHILE curtailing movement of the local population. The airport and harbor MUST be shut down with immediate effect. Both seem equally as important to me!!” Bonefish said: “The government is hoping to limit the spread of the coronavirus through this curfew. They are following in the foot steps of other countries.They were caught flat footed by the virus spread and other countries reaction to it.This situation also exposes how vulnerable this country and it’s economy is to external shocks. That is one of the reasons a former FNM cabinet minister in the Ingraham government felt reducing the deficit to zero in three years was too ambitious.” In response to a previous article on the coronavirus response, realitycheck242 said: “ Minnis wearing his doctor’s hat is aware of the amount of Bahamians that could die if new emergency measures are not enacted soon to avoid the resulting deaths that is taking place now in Italy and Iran. It is very important that the Bahamas implement
protective measures at this time or we will never have a tourism industry again. We must flatten the curve because of the cases of the corona virus we have discovered so far with protective measures. We must not let the virus get to the point in the Bahamas where doctors have to choose to let the old die because the cases have overwhelmed the health care system.” In response to Health Minister Dr Duane Sands’ warning that there would be more cases, Well_mudda_ take_sic said: “It seems this clown has finally figured out something that has all along been as certain as the sun setting tonight, thanks in large part to the Minnisled government’s failure to implement early containment measures. Even now Minnis is still way behind the curve in dealing with this grave crisis. Latest case in point is the thousands of spring breakers who have recently come to our beaches. Governor Santis kicked these Covid-19 carrying spring breakers off of Florida’s beaches and common sense should have told Minnis that many of them would hop on a plane to Nassau. The Minnis-led government failed to act in concert with Florida and similtaneously shut down our beaches so that these Covid-19 carrying spring breakers would have stayed away from our country. Thanks tt our reckless Minnis-led government we are likely to soon have a situation worse than even Italy is going through.
Whose rights are more important? EDITOR, The Tribune. I HAVE been closely monitoring the standoff between a local Bahamian entrepreneur and the Free National Movement (FNM) government concerning the leasing of Crown Land on Colonial Beach, Paradise Island. Here is the issue that is causing some Bahamians in Nassau to get their Hanes undies in a bunch: Royal Caribbean, which has total assets pegged at $27.69bn, as of 2018, wants to lease land on Paradise Island for its $50m Royal Beach Project. The problem is, the Bahamian entrepreneur wants the same land Royal Caribbean is getting for his $2m project that will hire an estimated 40 Bahamians. Apparently, whatever adjustments were made by the FNM government that contravenes the memorandum of understanding, initially agreed to in order to accommodate Royal Caribbean, have been rejected outright by the Bahamian entrepreneur and his sympathisers. Based on my layman’s observations of this standoff between the entrepreneur and the FNM government, I can honestly appreciate why the government would want to accommodate Royal Caribbean, at the risk of appearing to be antiBahamian in the process.
LETTERS letters@tribunemedia.net Indeed, the principle of English philosopher Jeremy Bentham’s Utilitarianism is at play here, in which the interests of one Bahamian is weighed against the broader interests of thousands of Grand Bahamians, if there are any merits to the claim that the closing of the Grand Lucayan deal hinged on this Paradise Island deal. If I am reading The Nassau Tribune correctly, this was a point that was raised by both the Bahamian entrepreneur and Progressive Liberal Party Leader Philip Brave Davis. I believe both men are on to something. I wish the FNM government was more forthcoming in this regard. Be that as it may, at stake is tens of thousands of Grand Bahamians, many of whom have been catching economic hell since the early 2000s, something most Nassauvians cannot relate to. The situation in Freeport has deteriorated to the point where homeless Grand Bahamians, who are living in their vehicles or the abandoned Royal Oasis and International Bazaar buildings, are bathing at either Xanadu or Taino Beach. Had the FNM government acquiesced to the
demands of the Bahamian entrepreneur, Royal Caribbean might have packed up its georgie bundle and said, “forget the Grand Lucayan deal”. So rather than risk losing a $300m investment that will create thousands of direct and indirect jobs for an economy on life support, the government made the unpopular decision, upsetting the Bahamian entrepreneur and many Nassauvians in the process. Why risk losing a $300m investment that will create 3000-plus jobs in a dying Freeport City for a project that is projected to create only 40 jobs in financially robust New Providence and Paradise Island? Rather than putting one Bahamian in New Providence first, the government is simply putting thousands of Bahamians on Grand Bahama first. In this regard, the rights of the minority do not outweigh the rights of the majority. For the sake of Grand Bahamians, I do hope that the Bahamian entrepreneur will accept the compromise being offered to him, and not engage the government and Royal Caribbean in any protracted legal wrangling, which might imperil the Grand Lucayan deal. KEVIN EVANS Freeport, Bahama, March 5, 2020.
Grand
Challenges for poor women EDITOR, The Tribune. AS WE celebrate the social, economic, cultural and political achievements of women in general, it is also important to accelerate women’s equality particularly in developing countries. The systems and structures that nurture and promote gender inequalities
in poor countries should be vigorously exposed, challenged and changed. Women in poor countries should be empowered to participate effectively in sports. Workplaces should be inclusive for women to thrive and mechanism to support women to earn on their own terms should be implemented.
We should all be united and challenge gender norms, empower women, celebrate diversity, break stereotypes and take action to make positive differences to women in poor countries. HANDSEN CHIKOWORE Nassau, March 7, 2020.
THE TRIBUNE
Friday, March 20, 2020, PAGE 7
Receiver takes over Nygard firms from page one and sexual assault against him. This was swiftly followed by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and New York Police Department raid on Nygard Group’s New York and California offices, which resulted in its largest customer, Dillard’s, dropping the Canadian’s empire as a supplier. White Oak and Second Avenue alleged that this represented a further default under the loan agreement, for which $25.87m is allegedly outstanding and owing, due to Dillard’s accounting for 67 percent - more than twothirds - of Nygard Group’s third party wholesale group. Richter Advisory Group, which was appointed as the Nygard Group’s receiver by the Canadian courts on
PETER NYGARD Wednesday, has moved arrangement with the swiftly to seek Chapter 15 Nygard Group ran into recognition from the south- problems almost immeern New York bankruptcy diately after the deal was court so it can protect its sealed on December 30, assets from legal actions by 2019. The lenders were creditors said to be owed a to male “formula-based combined $60.551m. revolving loans not to New York court filings exceed $40m” to Mr seen by Tribune Business Nygard’s US companies, allege that White Oak which were secured on his and South Avenue’s loan fashion empire’s assets and
‘VIRUS WILL NOT STOP STORM RELIEF EFFORTS’ By LEANDRA ROLLE Tribune Staff Reporter lrolle@tribunemedia.net CHAIRMAN of the Disaster Reconstruction Authority John-Michael Clarke said yesterday that while the COVID-19 threat will cause things to “slow down”, officials will not stop relief and rebuilding efforts on storm impacted islands. Face-to-face services will be suspended in favour of online mechanisms, which will be utilised by DRA personnel. “We’re suspending the face-to-face. (But) everything will be done online and remotely so what we’ve done is we equipped our offices and our staff to work remotely so as long as you could get online, everything will continue,” he told The Tribune yesterday. “We’ve ensured that staff will be able to work remotely so you know, they have the requisite technology, laptops etc. in order to continue the operations. But, the work of reconstruction goes on.” In response to the pandemic, DRA said it has activated the “Action 1” phase in its crisis plan. “The activation of ‘Action 1’ ensures that critical disaster reconstruction services continue to be provided while limiting risk to DRA staff and customers,” officials said in a statement. As a result, DRA said, “All non-critical travel by staff of the Disaster Reconstruction Authority has been discontinued.” Additionally, “all visits by the public to the Small Home Repair Assistance programme offices in Abaco, Grand Bahama and New Providence have been suspended. “Members of the public can continue to submit quotes to abacofinance@ drabahamas.org for Abaco homes and finance@drabahamas.org for Grand Bahama homes. Registration continues for Small Home Repair Assistance via www.drabahamas.org,” the statement noted. The Small Home Repair programme, among other initiatives, was launched by the DRA in February
to assist residents in Abaco and Grand Bahama whose homes were damaged during Hurricane Dorian in early September. With attention now fixed on the country’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic, there have been concerns by residents on the islands that relief efforts will be pushed aside indefinitely. However, Mr Clarke said officials are still committed to assisting storm victims on those islands. “Things will slow down as a matter of course because human health comes first insofar as we’re able to continue work without risking the health of the persons involved in the reconstruction and acting on the advice of the Ministry of Health, we will continue work.” This work, he said, will include finalising dome applications. “Our technical officer on the ground will still be speaking with social services to get the domes in Spring City occupied,” he said. “We have domes outside of Spring City that have already been constructed on other people’s properties and we are going through our assessments to determine where else we could put those.” “Everything still continues, but we just aren’t doing face to face.” Asked when persons will be allowed to move into those domes, Mr Clarke replied: “Well, for the ones that are in Spring City…we will be doing a joint assessment with (social services) and the residents of Spring City that are most vulnerable, they will be given access to the domes.” It is not clear when inperson services will resume on the islands as Mr Clarke said they would have to be guided by health officials. In the meantime, Mr Clarke said operations to clean up communities on the storm impacted islands will remain ongoing. “That will continue, and they are encouraged to follow the protocols outlined by the Ministry of Health,” he said on the matter.
SCOUT BANQUET POSTPONED DUE to the outbreak of Covid-19 and in the abundance of caution and on advice from the Ministry of Health and government officials, the Scout Association of The Bahamas has postponed its celebratory banquet in honour of John
Phillpot, president emeritus. It was due to be held on Saturday, March 28. A new date will be announced after the all clear is given. All tickets sold will be honoured on the new date.
guaranteed by the Canadian operation. “Almost immediately after closing the credit facility, on or about January 3, 2020, the debtors committed various events of default under the credit agreement,” Richter Advisory alleged in court papers. The breaches, it alleged, included “providing the lenders with cash flow forecasts and funding requests that contemplated a cash need that was several millions of dollars in excess of the amount available pursuant to the credit agreement’s borrowing base calculation”. Richter Advisory added: “The lenders, with the assistance of Richter and despite limited co-operation from the debtors and their principal, Peter Nygard, made significant efforts to understand the debtors’ increased funding needs and potential
solutions for the Nygard Group’s liquidity crisis. “In the midst of the foregoing, the lenders learned that Peter Nygard and several of the [Nygard Group’s US companies] had been sued in a class action lawsuit in the US District Court for the Southern District of New York. “The class action lawsuit alleges, among other things, that Mr Nygard raped and sexually assaulted multiple children and women, and that the [US companies] knowingly aided and abetted him in a decades-long sex-trafficking scheme. “The debtors advised White Oak of the class action lawsuit nearly one week after its issuance, in breach of the credit agreement’s requirement that the Nygard Group promptly notify White Oak of any litigation that could reasonably be expected to result in a material adverse effect on
the business.” Then came the FBI and New York police raid, and the loss of the Dillard’s account, where it “had refused current deliveries, cancelled all existing orders and suspended all future purchases from the Nygard Group”. Mr Nygard announced he would step down from his fashion empire, and sell it, the very same day. However, the fact that Mr Nygard and his fashion brand are virtually one and the same is likely to complicate any sale. The two are indivisible, and court documents obtained by Tribune Business reveal that the Nygard Group had sought protection from White Oak/South Avenue and their other creditors under the Canadian Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act. • For the full story, see Business section.
RAPPER OFFERS DONATION TO FIGHT COVID-19 AMERICAN rapper and actor Christopher “Ludacris” Bridges will donate $200,000 worth of medical equipment to The Bahamas through a partnership with his charity and HeadORG to help fight the spread of COVID-19. According to a press release, HeadORG, The Ludacris Foundation and MedShare Ltd will donate medical equipment and supplies, including 100,000 masks that can be put into inventory this week, to assist the nation’s medical needs. The team met with The Ludacris Foundation in Abaco on Saturday where officials are discussing rebuilding efforts on the storm-battered island. “In our continued recovery efforts, we realised the strain of rebuilding that our medical field has encountered. (An associate) and I have been working together for quite a few months to make this happen. And we are proud to deliver, especially at such a crucial time in our society with the coronavirus now diagnosed in the country,” said Lia Head-Rigby, founder of The Head Foundation. At the meeting, Ludacris stressed how important it is to him and his family that they “continue to support the rebuilding process through Lia
RAPPER Ludacris with members of the Ludacris Foundation and HeadORG. and her teams.” “We really had the desire to meet those medical teams on ground face to face – thank them for the arduous task still at hand,” he said. This second mission with Ludacris, is a donation of $200,000, which was originally promised at the Hurricane Dorian Pledging Conference earlier this year. “The first mission we delivered insulin, hygiene kits, gloves and masks, dental kits and water kits, as well as worked with Chef Jose Andres at World Food Kitchen by donating to his foundation. It’s so important for foundations to work hand in hand
and help each other to keep pushing forward to one common goal,” said Roberta Shields, Ludacris Foundation’s president. “We are so pleased to still be a part of the mission to help The Bahamas.” Mrs Head-Rigby is currently in the middle of a legal battle with her former colleague Gina Knowles. Both women founded the HeadKnowles Foundation and are now embroiled in a dispute over the transfer of Hurricane Dorian donations from Mrs Head-Rigby’s US bank account to local foundation officials. Mrs HeadRigby has denied any wrongdoing and said she would file a countersuit.
PAGE 8, Friday, March 20, 2020
THE TRIBUNE
It’s time to stop, think and be ready when the world starts turning again By Diane Phillips WE HAVE all seen the pictures. Empty streets in downtown Nassau. Empty seats on planes. Prince George Wharf and Festival Place, where the usual complaint is overcrowding, now eerily silent. Store shutters and roll downs sending an unmistakable message – closed for business. At LPIA, the nation’s largest and busiest airport, you could stage a soccer match outside two terminals without causing inconvenience to anyone trying to check in. The coronavirus is a danger to the economic health of the nation. Its power is stunning. With three confirmed cases of the disease and no deaths to date, COVID19 has brought the engines that drive the tourismdependent economy to a halt. Hotel workers are being asked to take unpaid leave. Light industry businesses, already struggling, are trying to figure out how to pay staff when they can barely pay VAT. Feeding centres are wondering how to handle the crisis when more people than ever will need assistance and volunteers are told not to gather in numbers. Pastors urged to hold services online. In a country of people known to be among the friendliest and warmest in the world, we are ordered not to hug. We try to adjust, but hugging is in our genes. This is unchartered territory. We know how to respond when a hurricane advisory is issued. We have done it a hundred or a thousand times before. But we have never been in a COVID-19-like situation. For some, it is worse than for others. In Abaco, rebuilding from Dorian’s wrath is still in early stages and in Grand Bahama, suffering an already unacceptable unemployment rate and the personal cost of Dorian’s fury, the last
thing Grand Bahamians need is its hopes of a recovery being slowed by a global stranglehold on growth. It is understandable that many have hit the panic button. I suggest we look at it differently. Not panic, but a temporary halt and reset, the incredible, greatly under appreciated Pause button. The idea of thinking of this time as a Pause button moment, or month, or period, is that it helps define where we stand and it promises opportunity to control what comes after. It also gives it a label we can refer to when we look back on it years from now. March 2020, the time in history when The Bahamas hit the Pause button. Pause – an interruption. A place of inactivity between what went before and what will come after. On our screens, the Pause button is the two equal rectangular lines, side by side the term with a space ‘It is understandable Caesura, in between. (think We love the that many have hit cease) Pause button. the panic button. I and used It allows us to music suggest we look at it in stop a scene in to mean, a movie right differently. Not panic, stop or then and there in poetry, but a temporary even if it is the pause, halt and reset, the to middle of a war or in litincredible, greatly erature, or a hot steamy kiss just so we under appreciated a wellcan refill our placed Pause button.’ wine glass or go comma. to the bathroom It first before we resume Play. appeared as a standard fixPause is only a tempo- ture in our daily lives in the rary state. 1960s in the old eight-track Googling its history was reel-to-reel tape recorders interesting. Its origin goes and a short while later, casback hundreds of year to sette players.
LYNDEN Pindling International Airport - deserted with few travellers in sight.
As drastic as the churning waves of coronavirus control measures are, if we think of this period as a Pause and reset button in the life of The Bahamas, we have an opportunity to shape what comes after. We can vow to respect the role of tourism while working to wean ourselves off its single teat. So long as we suck at that single source, we will always be vulnerable to its withdrawal. When the Play button hits, we can demonstrate far stronger and more serious attempts to support local farmers and develop food security, renew efforts to boost sustainable
businesses, cottage industries and light industry, place more emphasis on renewable sources of energy, show more deference to construction trades and development and continue to respect financial and professional services. What we can learn from hitting our Pause button is this: Let us take out the National Development Plan, show that we are bigger than dwelling on which political party authorized it, and when the Play button lights up, be ready. Then, appoint an oversight committee to continue guiding the Plan
so it remains dynamic and relevant. When the economy kicks back into first gear, let’s make sure it can get to second, third, fourth and overdrive by running parallel streams – one acknowledging and serving the role of tourism and the other focused and well-resourced and financed to grow the diversification of domestic construction, development, agriculture, mari-culture, energy efficiency and solutions, marine-related services, unique financial services, medical advancements and environmental awareness and protection.
COOL HEADS AND HOPEFULLY NO FEVERED BROWS AS the “corona” pandemic heightens around the world and throughout The Bahamas, let’s us all remain calm and aware. In times like these cooler heads prevail. HOARDING Relax, frenzied Bahamian shoppers, there is no need to ‘grab up erryting in sight’ there are food supplies for up to three months, according local food stores. So moving forward, please leave some water, bread, canned goods,
A Comic’s View
BY INIGO ‘NAUGHTY’ ZENICAZELAYA coffee, tea and, of course, some toilet tissue, in your wake, for the rest of us who actually need some. Seriously, if you need 144 rolls of toilet tissue for 14 days, there was something way wrong with you before
the coronavirus - please seek medical attention immediately. But phone first, doctors are busy now. FAKE NEWS The coronavirus pandemic has also proven my
NOTICE TO: MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC WORKERS’ CO-OPERATIVE CREDIT UNION LIMITED A Special-Call Meeting will be held on FRIDAY, MARCH 27TH, 2020, beginning at 6:00 p.m., at the BAHAMAS PUBLIC SERVICES’ UNION (BPSU)HALL, East Street south (across from Esso gas station); for the sole purpose of electing a NOMINATION COMMITTEE re: the upcoming 40th ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING (scheduled for Friday, May 22nd, 2020).
All ELIGIBLE members are invited to attend!!
theory, you know the one about smart phones, in the hands of the D average, correct! Please all you “wanna be” media and loyal political minions out there, cease and desist from the unnecessary production of “fake news” (can we come up with a new term for this) just for “likes” or “follows” on your various social media platforms. It does nothing but “bastardise” the real news process, and gives no beneficial information to the nation. In a nutshell, know better, do better, and if not, here’s a fine or 18 months in HMP to think about it. I’m in total agreement with the present administration on this one, and before all the finger pointers out there take aim, what I do is called “satire” both in this column and in “The Coldest” videos, therefore, I’m good, don’t mix me up on your run. CURFEW Finally, I’ve got to wrap this column up before “curfew”. The “curfew”, I’m thinking was the contribution from the Office of the Spouse. (Playing off the fact that professional sports is non existent at this time). Let’s look at it more closely. • Bars/Liquor Stores - CLOSED • NO groups or gatherings more than ten persons. • NO ONE on the roads between 9pm and 5am. Really this equates to endless reruns of “chick flicks” along with Bravo
GLOVES, check. Cleaning materials, check. Must be a Bahamas shopping run during coronavirus. and Lifetime programming in abundance. Not to mention ample free time for us men to put in “work”; touch ups around the house, painting, cleaning, chores, etc. Call me crazy (again), but I’m on to something I tell you!
Until next week, and I get to the bottom of the “curfew’’, please remain cool, calm and collected. Follow the proper Ministry of Health, CDC and WHO guidelines and we should be all right, or at least we will all have some great home makeovers.
THE THETRIBUNE TRIBUNE
We’ll Remain ‘OPEN’
March 20,2020, 2020,PAGE PAGE99 FRIDAY,Friday, MARCH 20TH,
THE PEOPLE’S PAPER & RADIO STATIONS....
......... THEN, NOW AND FOREVER In the days ahead The Tribune will be here, as we have done for more than 117+ years, to serve our fellow Bahamians. We appreciate times may be very challenging, but life will go on! We can’t and won’t let the Coronavirus beat us. Rest assured, we’ll bring you the most accurate, reliable news and breaking events in print, digital, online and through our sister radio stations, 100JAMZ, JoyFM, Y98fm & KISSfm. Many businesses will be open and others anxious to still communicate to their clients. For that, our advertising team are in place.To keep us all safe we are asking all clients to electronically send in all advertising, classifed, Obits and/or Notices via e-mail, until further notice. NEWSPAPER AdS: clASSifiEd/ cAR: HomE dElivERy BREAkiNg NEWS:
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Being Bound To Swear To The Dogmas Of No Master
PAGE 10, Friday, March 20, 2020
CORONAVIRUS: NO NEW CASES IN WUHAN • THE Chinese city of Wuhan where the virus at the heart of the global pandemic was first detected has recorded a second consecutive day with no new confirmed or suspected cases. Nationwide, a total of 39 cases were recorded Friday, the health ministry said, all of them brought from overseas. Three more deaths were also registered, bringing China’s total to 3,248, a figure surpassed on Thursday by Italy as the highest in a single nation. China still leads in overall cases, with 80,967, more than 71,000 of whom have been declared healthy and sent home. China has loosened some travel restrictions in Hubei, the province surrounding Wuhan, although its provincial border remains closed and Wuhan itself remains under lockdown. Officials say they will only lift the quarantine after Wuhan goes 14 consecutive days with no new case. • SOME flights to Beijing are being rerouted to regional airports to relieve pressure on the capital for screening large numbers of incoming passengers. China has not banned travellers from abroad, but Beijing and other cities are requiring that all undergo 14-day quarantines, either at home or at a government-designated facility such as a hotel or makeshift observation centre. China is very slowly coming back to life, with the government saying about 80% of economic activity has been restored, although millions of workers remain stranded by travel bans. • HAITI has confirmed its first two cases of the new coronavirus. President Jovenel Moise said the unidentified patients that tested positive for COVID-19 have been quarantined. He declined to release further details out of fear for their safety. Moise also said he would close all airports, schools, factories and seaports. The announcement comes just days after officials closed the border that Haiti and the Dominican Republic share on the island of Hispaniola. Haiti is the poorest country in the western Hemisphere, and many worry the country is not equipped to handle a possible spread of coronavirus.
THE TRIBUNE
ITALIAN DEATH TOLL OVERTAKES CHINA’S AS VIRUS SPREADS By NICOLE WINFIELD and TIM SULLIVAN Associated Press
ROME (AP) — Italy’s death toll from the coronavirus outbreak eclipsed China’s on Thursday as the scourge extended its march across the West, where the United States and other countries increasingly enlisted the military and improvised at every turn to get ready for an onslaught of patients. In the U.S., the Army prepared mobile military hospitals for deployment in major cities. In Madrid, a four-star hotel was turned into a hospital. Medical centers around the United States set up drive-thru testing sites that drew long lines of motorists waiting for nurses to swab their nostrils. As the outbreak spread westward, it infected at least one European head of state: Monaco’s 62-year-old Prince Albert II, who continued to work from his office. And it appeared to be opening an alarming new front in Africa, where health care in many countries is already in sorry shape. At the United Nations in New York, Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said the world is “at war with a virus” and warned that “a global recession, perhaps of record dimensions, is a near certainty.” “If we let the virus spread like wildfire — especially in the most vulnerable regions of the world -- it would kill millions of people,” he said. Italy, with 60 million citizens, recorded a total of at least 3,405 deaths, or roughly 150 more than in China, a country with a population over 20 times larger. At the same time Italy reached its bleak milestone, Wuhan, the Chinese city where the coronavirus first emerged three months ago, recorded no new infections, a sign that the communist country’s draconian lockdowns had worked. Health authorities cited a variety of reasons for Italy’s high toll, key among them its large population of elderly people, who are particularly susceptible to serious complications from the virus. Italy has the world’s second-oldest population, and the vast majority of its dead — 87% — were over 70. Jonas Schmidt-Chanasit, a virologist at Germany’s Bernhard Nocht Institute for Tropical Medicine, offered another reason for Italy’s high death rate: “That’s what happens when the health
The Scout Association of The Bahamas Due to the outbreak of Covid-19 in The Bahamas and the abundance of caution and advice from the Ministry of Health and Government Officials,
The Scout Association of The Bahamas wishes to advise our sponsors and the general public, the Celebratory Banquet in Honour of Mr. John Phillpot, President Emeritus scheduled for March 28, 2020 has been POSTPONED
As soon as the ‘all clear’ is given, a new date will be announced for the Banquet. All tickets sold will be honoured on the new date. As a well established worldwide voluntary youth organization, The Scout Association encourages all to please take the necessary precaution and safeguard your family.
A VIEW of the corridor outside the intensive care unit of the hospital of Brescia, Italy, Thursday. Italy has become the country with the most coronavirus-related deaths, surpassing China by registering 3,405 dead. Italy reached the gruesome milestone on the same day the epicentre of the pandemic, Wuhan, China, recorded no new infections. For most people, the new coronavirus causes only mild or moderate symptoms. For some it can cause more severe illness. (Claudio Furlan/LaPresse via AP) system collapses.” In a measure of how the fortunes of East and West have shifted, New York officials were sent to China to buy more ventilators. And in Italy, the leader of a delegation from the Chinese Red Cross openly castigated Italians for failing to take the country’s national lockdown seriously.
Hotels On a visit to the hard-hit city of Milan, Sun Shuopeng said he was shocked to see so many people walking around, using public transportation and eating out in hotels. “Right now we need to stop all economic activity, and we need to stop the mobility of people,” he said. “All people should be staying at home in quarantine.” Worldwide the death toll crept toward 10,000 and the total number of infections topped 240,000, including nearly 85,000 people who have recovered. In the U.S., where deaths reached at least 178, and infections climbed past 11,000, Army officials announced plans to deploy two hospitals, probably to Seattle and New York City. Washington state had the highest death toll, 74. President Donald Trump said earlier this week that he would send a Navy hospital ship to the West Coast as well as one to New York City, which is rapidly becoming a U.S. epicentre, with more than 4,000 cases. Damage to the world’s
largest economy kept piling up, with the number of Americans filing for unemployment benefits surging by 70,000 last week. On Wall Street, though, stocks rose modestly amid optimism over efforts by the Federal Reserve and other central banks to shore up the economy. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained almost 200 points, or 1%. Congress is weighing a proposed $1 trillion emergency package that would dispense relief checks to households in as many as two rounds, the first of which would consist of payments of $1,000 per adult and $500 for each child. Around the country, governors and mayors sounded increasingly alarmed and took ever more drastic measures to fend off the crisis. Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf ordered the closing of all “non-life-sustaining” businesses in the state, with exceptions for gas stations, grocery stores, pharmacies and takeout restaurant service, and warned that violators could be subject to fines or imprisonment. At a video conference with Trump, governors complained that they were having difficulty obtaining such things as swabs and protective gear for doctors and nurses. And New York Mayor Bill de Blasio lashed out at the president as “the Herbert Hoover of your generation,” referring to the man who was president when the stock market crashed in 1929 and the Depression set in. New York Gov. Andrew
Cuomo said the state does not have enough ventilators for the expected surge of patients in need of help breathing, and needs to acquire thousands before the outbreak overwhelms hospitals. “Every state is shopping for ventilators. We’re shopping for ventilators. We literally have people in China shopping for ventilators which is one of the largest manufacturers. So this is a major problem,” he said. A Houston hospital that opened its doors to drivethru testing quickly saw a line of hundreds of vehicles back up for more than a mile. At a white tent, workers in masks and head-to-toe protective gear swabbed motorists. Petra Sanchez waited to find out whether she had the virus. “I have an 80-year-old dad, and I haven’t been around him for the same reason,” she said. “I don’t know what I have.” The U.S. State Department, meanwhile, warned Americans in the strongest terms yet not to travel abroad under any circumstances.
Legislation Around the world, the British government, criticised as slow to react to the virus, shifted gears and drew up legislation giving itself new powers to detain people and restrict gatherings. The bill is expected to be approved by Parliament next week. The British supermarket chain Sainsbury’s
reserved the first hour of shopping for vulnerable customers. Among them was Jim Gibson, 72, of London, who was concerned that the country wasn’t ramping up testing fast enough. “You can’t go on ignoring World Health Organisation guidelines — if they’re wrong, who the hell is right?” he said. “Let’s have no shilly-shallying.” French Prime Minister Edouard Philippe pleaded with people to keep their distance from one another to avoid spreading the virus, even as the crisis pushed them to seek comfort. “When you love someone, you should avoid taking them in your arms,” he said in Parliament. In China, Thursday marked the first time since Jan. 20 that the locked-down city of Wuhan, where thousands once lay sick or dying in hurriedly constructed hospitals, reported no new locally transmitted cases. Authorities said all 34 new cases recorded over the previous day had come from abroad. “Today, we have seen the dawn after so many days of hard effort,” said Jiao Yahui, a senior inspector at the National Health Commission. The World Health Organisation warned, though, that the virus is spreading quickly in Africa, from about five countries a week and a half ago to 35 of the continent’s 54 nations — an “extremely rapid evolution,” said WHO’s Africa chief, Dr. Matshidiso Moeti.
FAMILY members applaud from their house in support of the medical staff that are working in coronavirus or COVID-19 outbreak in Brussels, Thursday. (AP Photo/ Francisco Seco)
EUROPEANS SING HEALTH WORKERS’ PRAISES NIGHTLY FROM WINDOWS By LORI HINNANT Associated Press
PARIS (AP) — At a time of isolation, people in many European cities hit hard by the new coronavirus are taking at least a minute each night to come together in gratitude. They stand at open windows or on balconies in Rome, Madrid, Paris, Athens and Amsterdam, singing, cheering and applauding even though they know their intended audience is too busy to listen. The adulation is for the doctors, nurses and other health care workers putting themselves at risk on the front lines of the pandemic that is forcing most residents to stay home. A 52-year-old nurse on Thursday became
the first medical professional in Spain to die of COVID-19. In Italy, where the number of virus-related deaths surpassed those in China, 2,900 health care providers have been infected, or 10% of the country’s total. Italian broadcasters regularly feature exhausted doctors and nurses begging people to stay home and expressing a sense of abandonment over inadequate protective gear. The Dutch health minister collapsed from exhaustion in the midst of a parliamentary session on Wednesday. “We’re clapping tonight out of respect and to say thank you to all the health care workers in the Netherlands who are protecting us against this horrible coronavirus,” King Willem-Alexander said while
observing the ritual Tuesday night with his family at Palace Huis ten Bosch in The Hague. The word spread mostly through the WhatsApp messaging service. In France, where the head of the national doctors’ federation picked up the virus from a diabetic patient, the call went out seemingly spontaneously by text messages hours after a nationwide lockdown went into effect Tuesday. Windows opened promptly at 8 p.m. then and again on Wednesday. “In this period of crisis, we are going to see the most beautiful things humanity has to offer, but also perhaps the darkest,” French Prime Minister Edouard Philippe said. In Brussels and other cities, the intended audience for the
nightly chorus of thanks was expanded to everyone working to keep essential services running in Belgium, such as firefighters, supermarket workers and trash collectors. In Spain, people are singing Mónica Naranjo’s popular cover of the disco-era tune “I Will Survive” with the lyrics tweaked to say, “I will survive/I’ll look for a home/ Among the rubble of my loneliness/Strange paradise/ Where you are missed.” Workers at one hospital responded with a video recorded in the facility’s corridors. Standing in a small group and wearing masks, they held up one sign after another with messages that included, “We are all in this together.” Then, they gave a minute of applause for their home-bound admirers.
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‘QUARANTINE SHAMING’: US NAVIGATES RADICAL NEW SOCIAL NORMS By GILLIAN FLACCUS Associated Press THE chairman of Arizona’s Asian Chamber of Commerce didn’t see much downside to attending a small dinner at a local restaurant to bolster the business and bring together other leaders to discuss how to help Asian-American eateries devastated by the coronavirus. That was, at least, until he posted about it on Instagram. The feedback was swift from people who were appalled that Ryan Winkle would promote a gathering — even a small one — as COVID-19 raged and entire cities were urged to self-isolate. “I started getting some messages saying, ‘Hey, why are you trying to spread the virus?’ I was like, ‘It’s a small event, and everyone had washed their hands, and they had sanitiser on the tables,’” Winkle said of the dinner held Saturday in Mesa, Arizona. “My thinking is always about the economics. Imagine when all these businesses shut down. That’s a whole different problem.” “Quarantine shaming” — calling out those not abiding by social distancing rules — is part of a new and startling reality for Americans who must navigate a world of rapidly evolving social norms in the age of COVID-19. As schools close and shelter-in-place orders sweep across the US, the divide between those who are stringently practicing self-isolation and those who are still trying to go about some semblance of a normal life has never been more clear. Complicating matters: What was socially acceptable even 48 hours ago may now be taboo, as government officials race to contain the virus with everexpanding circles of social isolation. “The time matrix seems to be shifting. I’ve never known several days to go by so slowly and watching
BEACHGOERS enjoy a sunny day in Destin, Florida, on March 18. There’s a new type of social policing out there that’s developed almost as quickly as the viral disease that spurred its arrival. It’s called “quarantine shaming,” calling out those who are leaving the house for daily activities or who aren’t abiding by social distancing rules. And it’s part of a new reality for Americans who must navigate a world of rapidly evolving social norms in the age of COVID-19. (AP) the collective conscience move more and more in one direction day by day,” said Paula Flakser, who lost her bartending job when California’s Mammoth Mountain ski resort closed this week. For those who must go to work, the divide is widening too. Steve Diehl, who is considered an essential employee at his job at a warehouse near Chicago, wears a mask to work because a family member has a compromised immune system. He’s terrified of catching the new coronavirus or transmitting it to his loved one at home. Diehl posted a sign at the warehouse entrance asking people to put on masks that were provided “to protect immuno-compromised family,” but several co-workers didn’t wear them, he said. One of them coughed into his hand while standing by Diehl’s desk — and then began to touch things on his desk with the same hand. “That angered me greatly,” said Diehl, who posted a photo
of himself in a mask on Twitter. “And when I made a comment about it, they shrugged it off.” Others who are trying to juggle working from home while caring for kids who are also home are making smaller and more mundane choices that nevertheless bring shocked responses — or even rebukes — from co-workers, friends and even family. Is it OK to run out for a coffee? Can you allow your children to go the playground? What about sending kids to day care centers, which remain the only lifeline in many states that have closed schools? Flakser, the woman who lost her bartending job, said she was upset by the hundreds of people who flocked to her tiny hometown of Bishop, California, from Los Angeles and other large cities to vacation the minute schools shut down. The 42-year-old climber posted angry messages about the crowds on Facebook and was quoted in an online climbing magazine, Thundercling.
So many people descended on a climbing spot called Happy Boulders over the weekend that lines of people were walking into the narrow canyon. The routes to reach the top mean dozens of people were grabbing the same handholds in the rock again and again, potentially spreading germs, she said. “When people from urban areas are escaping, they’re escaping to vulnerable areas that have incredibly limited medical resources — and it felt pretty entitled and selfish,” she said in a phone interview. “It feels like a lot of first-world privilege knocking at our door.” By Wednesday, the crowds had abated — possibly because of the article and social media posts — but “this weekend will be the true barometer,” Flakser said. Her concerns echo those who slammed St Patrick’s Day revelers who flooded bars in Chicago and New Orleans and those who called out college students who’ve been thronging to
beaches for spring break. An Instagram video of hundreds of partiers packed onto a “booze cruise” in the Bahamas drew comments calling for a boycott of the company that organised it. Some of the strong online reaction to these crowd-size violations likely stem from the fact that authorities would be hard-pressed to enforce the new rules and are relying on a social compact to keep everyone safe. In Oregon, for example, restaurants that continue to offer dine-in service would face only a low-level misdemeanour — and social shaming is much more effective. Jeff Carreras, owner of Tracey’s Original Irish Channel Bar in New Orleans, said he’s faced similar scathing criticism over the crowds that gathered outside his bar Saturday. People on Facebook accused him of raking in money while disregarding growing warnings about the dangers of crowds during the outbreak of COVID-19. One poster, Claire Hassig, said on the bar’s
page that her 70-year-old mother had to walk by to get to her car and was mobbed by “drunken idiots with zero respect for social distancing or her safety.” Carreras said he kept the crowd inside below its 250 capacity and didn’t set up the usual outside bar — but crowds formed anyway. It was the bar’s idea to have police break them up when his staff couldn’t do it, he said. “There’s no way I would entice, encourage the public to come out and spread a virus that’s as bad as it is,” he said. “We did everything we were asked to do.” Those appalled by the behaviour of some of their fellow Americans have welcomed a crackdown this week from many state and local governments that are adding daily to lists of closures and bans. Bars in a popular part of Portland, Oregon were busy on Friday and Saturday nights but are now dark after Governor Kate Brown banned all dine-in service at food establishments and bars statewide. Alec Bhurke, who wrote an angry post on Facebook about the weekend crowds, said most people likely just need that kind of guidance from authorities to recognise the seriousness of the crisis. “People don’t understand ... the implications of what even a single day does to the body count (from the virus) at this stage,” he said Wednesday. “But people should know better — and they should do better.” Winkle, for his part, has re-examined his approach to social distancing since the weekend event. It helps that Mesa instituted a ban on dine-in serve at restaurants and bars on Tuesday. “I get it, and I get where they’re coming from,” he said. “I definitely took it to heart and thought maybe it’s time to start slowing things down.”
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AP Interviews: Italian officials make emotional plea to IOC By ANDREW DAMPF AP Sports Writer ROME (AP) — With the coronavirus death toll now higher in Italy than anywhere else, two senior sports executives from the country issued emotional appeals yesterday to the International Olympic Committee to revise its stance over the Tokyo Games. “I’m not against the Olympics. But saying that the Olympics will still go on is a big mistake in communication,” Giovanni Petrucci, who served as president of the Italian Olympic Committee for 14 years, said in an interview with The Associated Press. “This pandemic is affecting the entire world,” Petrucci added, his voice breaking up with despair. “I know about the billion-dollar contracts, the insurance deals. I know it all. But human life is worth more than all of those things.” Petrucci’s call came after regional Olympic officials rallied around the IOC’s stance on opening the Tokyo Games as scheduled on July 24. “I don’t think I’m the only one who thinks this way. Others just don’t want to say it,” said Petrucci, who is now president of the Italian basketball federation. “I don’t want to attack the IOC. There are too many people there that I know. But I don’t know what else to say. I’m not trying to create controversy. I’m a realist. Look at the medical bulletins.” Athletes have also started questioning the IOC’s unwavering stance that the Olympics are still on. Athleten Deutschland, the main advocacy group for German athletes, said Thursday that the IOC is “stubbornly moving ahead with the planning of the games,” even though competitors are struggling to stay fit with restrictions on their lifestyle due to the virus. Italy, with a population of 60 million, has recorded at least 3,405 deaths, or roughly 150 more than in China — a country with a
MEDICAL personnel at work in the intensive care unit of the hospital of Brescia, Italy, yesterday. Italy has become the country with the most coronavirus-related deaths, surpassing China by registering 3,405 dead. Italy reached the gruesome milestone on the same day the epicenter of the pandemic, Wuhan, China, recorded no new infections. For most people, the new coronavirus causes only mild or moderate symptoms. For some it can cause more severe illness. (AP) population over 20 times larger. “There’s no country that hasn’t been affected. It’s a matter of respect toward those that are suffering,” Petrucci added, refusing to speculate whether the games should be canceled or postponed. “I’m not the one that should be saying. They should be saying this.” Paolo Barelli, the president of the Italian and European swimming federations, suggested the IOC needs to decide on the games’ status by mid-April. “By April 15, there will be some athletes who haven’t trained for two months,” Barelli told the AP. “Athletes are like clocks. They have to train and function impeccably. Many of
them still have to qualify, so they need to train not only to qualify but also for the Olympics. “So any date after mid-April becomes very complicated.” All sports in Italy were suspended 10 days ago when the entire nation was placed under lockdown. Events like the Olympic qualifying meet for the Italian swim team were postponed indefinitely. The world champion Italian men’s water polo team has not trained for two weeks due to closed pools and more than half of Italy’s swimming squad has been forced to suspend training, according to Barelli. “How long can they remain out of the water?” said Barelli, who is also
NBA TELLING TEAMS TO KEEP THEIR PLAYERS, STAFF OUT OF FACILITIES FROM PAGE 16 the Denver Nuggets said a member of their organisation tested positive. The Nuggets didn’t say if the person infected was a player, coach or another level of staff. The person, the Nuggets said, “experienced symptoms consistent with COVID-19” on Monday. NBA Commissioner Adam Silver told ESPN on Wednesday that eight teams have been tested; not all of those teams have publicly acknowledged testing, so it is possible that the number of positives among NBA players could be higher. With the belief that there are going to be no NBA games for several more weeks, at minimum, the league clearly felt yesterday was the right time to take the additional step of urging players to limit exposure. “Consistent with an increasing number of state and local government restrictions, and an emerging consensus regarding how to mitigate the spread of the coronavirus with which the NBA’s infectious disease and public health experts agree, effective tomorrow and until further notice, team practice or training facilities ... will be closed to players and staff,” the NBA wrote. “The league said the ban applies to G League facilities as well. For most people, the new coronavirus causes only mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and
cough. For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia. The vast majority of people recover from the new virus. According to the World Health Organisation, people with mild illness recover in about two weeks, while those with more severe illness may take three to six weeks to recover. In mainland China, where the virus first exploded, more than 80,000 people have been diagnosed and more than 58,000 have so far recovered. The NBA previously banned teams, as part of the coronavirus response, from using public health clubs, fitness centres, gyms and college facilities. But the league said yesterday that teams are permitted to set players up with training, conditioning, or other instructional materials for use at their homes. Some players have been doing individual workouts at team facilities, on the court or in the weight rooms. Others have gotten creative. Jimmy Butler of the Miami Heat recently posted images of a morning workout at his home, and Kevin Love of the Cleveland Cavaliers said he’s finding different ways to keep in some short of shape. “I’m incredibly blessed to just have some free weights here. I have a versa climber. I have enough stuff that I
won’t take a step back,” Love said Thursday. “I’ll make sure that I’m maintaining and hopefully keep my wind up and stay strong and just keep that constant tension on my body because it’s tough right now. I haven’t really left the house much.” The league also reminded teams Thursday that it recommends players remain in their team markets and avoid all non-essential travel, though players -- in concert with their team -can choose to go to another city and stay there instead. But players still cannot travel outside of North America; one of the reasons for that is logistical, since it is unclear if players who hypothetically want to return to homes in Europe would be allowed to fly back to the U.S. Thursday was the eighth full day of the NBA’s shutdown because of the virus. That brings the total of games missed to 57, including the two called off on March 11 — the night that the positive test of Utah Jazz All-Star centre Rudy Gobert was revealed and the league announced that it was suspending the season. “We will navigate these uncharted waters together,” Jazz coach Quin Snyder wrote in an open letter to Utah fans on Thursday, thanking them for their support. “Right now, we are all sacrificing in our own unique ways — for our health and for the greater good — and that is critical.”
vice president of the International Swimming Federation. Top Italian swimmers like Federica Pellegrini and Gregorio Paltrinieri continue to train in Verona and Rome, respectively. But even they might have to get out of the water soon. “Those that are lucky
enough to have their pool open and near their homes can train. But if the pool is 100 or 200 kilometers (60125 miles) away, how can they? The venues are operated by sports clubs and cities that can’t afford to keep them open for two or three people,” Barelli said. Even if they could train,
many athletes have simply lost focus while worrying more about relatives in the areas of northern Italy hardest hit by the virus. “They’re not training in ideal conditions,” Barelli said. “If this situation continues like this into April, talking about the Olympics is ridiculous.”
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CELEBRITIES GET VIRUS TESTS, RAISING CONCERNS OF INEQUALITY FROM PAGE 16 White House. “That does happen on occasion. And I’ve noticed where some people have been tested fairly quickly.” On Wednesday, the Brooklyn Nets professional basketball team announced the entire team was tested last week upon returning from San Francisco after a game against the Golden State Warriors. The team found a private lab to do the work, and on Tuesday announced that four of its players were positive for the virus, including perennial All-Star Kevin Durant. Even though public health resources were not used, it raised the ire of many, including New York Mayor Bill de Blasio. “We wish them a speedy recovery,” the mayor wrote on Twitter. “But, with all due respect, an entire NBA team should NOT get tested for COVID-19 while there are critically ill patients waiting to be tested. Tests should not be for the wealthy, but for the sick.” Like Robin Fraser. The 30-year-old has fibromyalgia and an autoimmune disorder that put her at high risk for complications if she contracts the virus. She’s been running a fever and coughing since last week. Her doctor recommended she get tested at the emergency room, but there she was told there weren’t enough tests, so she can’t get one. “That’s just not fair,” said Fraser, who lives in Victor, New York, near Rochester. Fraser has seen celebrities and politicians getting tests, and that upsets her. “Why are they getting in front of the line? People like me, average Joes, we get pushed to the back of the line. Why can Congress get it and we can’t?” she asked. Among the powerful people who have gotten tests in recent weeks were South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham and Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz. Both Republican lawmakers were exposed to someone who tested positive, but their tests came back negative. Public frustrations over the difficulties getting tested for the new virus have been building since the first US case was confirmed January 20. Early missteps with test kits developed by the Centers for
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IN this March 17 photo, a health worker displays the packaged nasopharyngeal swab, which goes about two inches into the nasal cavity, used on patients at a drive-through COVID-19 testing station for University of Washington Medicine patients in Seattle. (AP) Disease Control and Prevention, coupled with strict government criteria about who qualified for screening, have led to widespread reports of people struggling to get tested. Even those who manage to get successfully swabbed often report long delays in getting the results back due to lengthy backlogs at government-run labs. Seeking to break the logjam, the federal Food and Drug Administration announced earlier this month it would allow major private diagnostic lab companies to begin rolling out new COVID19 tests and relaxed regulations typically required before new tests can be brought to market. Over the last two weeks, that has led to a surge in testing available from private doctors and labs not bound by CDC’s criteria for which patients should be prioritised for testing, such as those with fever and difficulty breathing who have recently travelled to affected countries overseas, or those who have had close contact with someone confirmed to have had the virus. LabCorp, a major lab testing company, began providing COVID-19 test on March 5. Quest Diagnostics, another major national provider, followed suit on March 9. In a statement, LabCorp said its COVID-19 test is available on the order of any physician or other authorised healthcare provider
anywhere in the United States. The company said it expects to be performing more than 10,000 tests per day by the end of this week, ramping up to 20,000 tests per day by the end of this month. By comparison, the CDC and other public health labs conducted about 30,000 tests in the eight weeks since the pandemic arrived in the US, according to data compiled by researchers at Johns Hopkins University. The NBA suspended its season on March 11 after a Utah Jazz player tested positive for the coronavirus just before a game — eventually cancelled — with the Oklahoma City Thunder. Oklahoma’s state epidemiologist confirmed last week that the Jazz, their travelling party and a number of Utah beat writers — 58 people in all — were tested after the cancellation of the game in OKC once it became known that All-Star centre Rudy Gobert tested positive for the virus. League officials have said that since its players have direct contact with each other and often interact very closely with fans, both physicians who work for teams and public health officials were concerned that they could accelerate the spread of the virus. NBA spokesman Mike Bass said that players getting tested — and in some cases, revealing their positive status — may have ultimately “drawn attention to the
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critical need for young people to follow CDC recommendations.” Hollywood actor Idris Elba said he didn’t have any symptoms when he announced his positive test on Monday, prompting questions and criticism on social media about why he got a test when he was not symptomatic. Elba later explained that he was on location, about to start a film, and got tested after a person he was in contact with had tested positive. He said he would have put a lot of people at risk if he had continued working. “Quite honestly, my job made me test immediately,” said Elba, an Englishman best known for his roles on the HBO series “The Wire” and as a detective on the BBC One series “Luther.” Elba’s work situation isn’t unusual. Businesses across the country are shutting down to prevent employees from exposing themselves to the virus at work. Several cities, including New York, San Francisco and Washington, have ordered bars, restaurants, gyms, movie theaters and other businesses to close to slow the virus’ spread. Elba told The Associated Press in an email sent through his representative yesterday that he took the test in the United States and was tested by a private doctor through his employer, whom he did not name.
“Everyone should be able to be tested. Period,” he wrote to the AP. Elba said people not knowing if they are infected is a problem because they spread the virus further. He encouraged people to stay home until more tests become available. Ali Fedotowsky-Manno, former star of ABC’s “The Bachelorette,” found herself on the defensive after announcing in a post on Instagram on Sunday that she had been tested at a clinic in Los Angeles after she said she had shortness of breath and an X-ray that showed white spots on her lungs, and what she said were “all the symptoms of the virus, except for a fever.” She said she went to a clinic called Mend, which she said was “one of the only places that will do the test if you don’t have a fever.” Fedotowsky-Manno said Wednesday in an interview with The Associated Press that she had seen commentary accusing her of special treatment. She denied the accusation, saying she chose the clinic closest to her house. She checked in under her married name and only heard the clinic would give tests to people without a fever from someone else in the waiting room, after she was already there. “Nobody knew who I was at that urgent care. I went to urgent care like anybody could,” she said. The CEO of Mend did not return emails seeking comment, but the clinic’s website says it charges $195 for a home visit to collect swabs for COVID-19 tests, with Quest then billing a patient’s insurance to process the samples. “We would expect physicians to follow CDC clinical criteria,” said Wendy Bost, a spokeswoman for Quest. “Our materials about the test are clear on this point.” The company declined to provide a figure for what it charges for its COVID-19 test. Fedotowsky-Manno on Wednesday was still waiting for her results, five days after getting tested. She said she understands why people are upset over testing. “I think it’s crazy that everybody can’t get tested,” she said. “It’s absolutely absurd.”
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Friday, March 20, 2020, PAGE 15
INSIDE THE WEEK THAT HAS LEFT THE NBA AND NHL SHUT DOWN By TIM REYNOLDS and STEPHEN WHYNO AP Sports Writers IT has been just one week. That’s all. Just one full week since Utah Jazz centre Rudy Gobert tested positive for COVID-19, just one full week since the NBA became the first of the North American pro sports leagues to suspend operations, one week since sports essentially stopped. The NHL quickly followed the NBA’s lead and suspended play. Major League Soccer and Major League Baseball shuttered as well. Golf lasted a day before deciding it couldn’t still play, and auto racing screeched to a halt before the weekend. The NCAA basketball tournaments were called off and college sports for the entirety of the academic year soon followed. The situation, when it comes to the pro sports at least, is different for the NBA and NHL. The playoffs were looming, roughly a month or so away. They’re on hold now, just like virtually everything else in the world, and the only opponent for the best basketball and hockey teams on the planet is an invisible foe called COVID-19 — the coronavirus, a pandemic that has stopped the world on its axis. “I’ve washed my hands so much,” Golden State Warriors general manager Bob Myers said. “I’m not a big lotion guy, but my hands are getting dry, my knuckles are kind of bleeding. I think we’re all walking into this unknown. ... It’s not something we’ve ever experienced. It’s not something we ever expected to experience.” Yet here everyone is, entering a new reality. POSITIVE TESTS There are seven NBA players — four of them
identified — known to have the virus. A member of the NHL’s Ottawa Senators has it as well. The NBA, according to a person with knowledge of the plan, knew it would have to shut down as soon as someone tested positive and hoped originally that it would only be for two weeks. Forget two weeks now. At this point, two months seems overly optimistic of a timetable. “We just don’t know,” NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said last week. He offered a similar sentiment Wednesday night in an interview with ESPN. NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman and his staff were keeping track of the situation on a momentby-moment basis while different contingency plans were being worked out. Bettman told the Board of Governors that once a player tested positive, all bets were off. The NBA had sent similar indicators. THE GOBERT DOMINO Connecting the dots is impossible, simply because it’s unlikely to ascertain when or how Gobert or any other infected player got the virus. The Jazz played at the New York Knicks on March 4. The Washington Capitals played at the New York Rangers — using the same locker room that the Jazz did — the next night. The Detroit Pistons visited the Knicks on March 8, using that same locker room again; the Pistons’ Christian Wood tested positive about a week later. And the Tampa Bay Lightning went on the road to face the Boston Bruins and Detroit Red Wings, both times following the Jazz. “The Lightning followed the Utah Jazz into arenas in Boston and Detroit this past weekend, moving into a locker room in Boston that had been occupied by the Jazz,” the Lightning
said. “We know that in both arenas, deep cleaning and sanitisation took place in our locker rooms prior to our arrival. We also understand that with no actual contact with an infected person, our risk levels are low.” A week ago, most probably thought the risks seemed low. Now, everyone is just guessing. And it only took a week for everything to change. “We’re flying by the seat of our pants here,” Phoenix centre Frank Kaminsky said in his “Pros and Joes” podcast that was released Wednesday. “And I feel like everyone is.” MORE NHL AND NBA TESTS When Gobert tested positive just before a game the night of March 11, it sent shockwaves around sports. NHL games were ongoing, but Bettman and others sprung into action.
“It was clear to me that no matter what scenario we came up with that we continued to play with, either with or without fans, it was inconceivable, certainly unlikely, that we were going to get through the rest of the regular season at minimum without somebody testing positive,” Bettman said. NHL teams had scares. The Tampa Bay Lightning followed the Utah Jazz into the same arena in two cities, including the same locker room in Boston. The Carolina Hurricanes followed the Jazz into a Detroit hotel, and broadcaster John Forslund went into self-isolation after being informed the person who used his room before him tested positive. It took almost a week after the NHL season was suspended for the first player to test positive. The Senators announced late Tuesday night that an unnamed player had COVID-19 and that other
team employees were instructed to self-isolate and monitor their health. “The player has had mild symptoms and is in isolation,” the team said. “The Ottawa Senators are in the process of notifying anyone who has had known close contact with the athlete and are working with our team doctors and public health officials.” The Senators said Wednesday other players were being tested under supervision of medical officials. The NHL is not mandating testing unless someone shows symptoms, deputy commissioner Bill Daly said. NBA teams were worried as well. The Toronto Raptors were tested; their entire travel party had tests come back negative. The Los Angeles Lakers, a second person with knowledge of the matter, were in the process of getting players and staff tested this week because the Nets — who said they obtained
private testing — had four players test positive. The Lakers played the Nets on March 10. WHAT’S NEXT Yet even a week ago, very few saw this — a global shutdown — coming. “It’s funny. We had one guy in our entire organisation that was taking it extremely serious,” Kaminsky said. “He was warning everybody. Everyone would crack jokes at him. ... Like, you just think, ‘Oh, that’s in China. That’s not going to get here.’ And then the next thing you know, there’s reports that it’s getting worse and worse. “And then Rudy Gobert tests positive,” Kaminsky continued. “And then your season is pretty much over, or in a hiatus as they’re calling it.” It very well may be over. Basketball and hockey both say they plan to continue, but the reality is nobody can say anything with any real level of certainty.
SPORTS SECTION A
FRIDAY, MARCH 20, 2020
NBA telling teams to keep their players, staff out of facilities By TIM REYNOLDS AP Basketball Writer
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he NBA has told its teams to close its training and practice facilities to all players and staff starting today, saying the shuttering will last indefinitely in the latest response to the coronavirus pandemic. The league told teams of the new directive in a memo sent yesterday afternoon, a copy of which was obtained by The Associated Press. As recently as Monday, the NBA was telling teams that individual workouts could take place using what the league called the “one player, one coach, one basket” rule. Now, that’s not even permitted. If players are going to work out during the league’s shutdown, they’ll have to do it at home or some other private facility. The NBA said it was updating the guidelines “in light of the rapidly-developing coronavirus situation, and consistent with evolving advice from health experts regarding how to promote individual and public health while minimising the spread of the virus.” It further recommended that players “should take aggressive measures to avoid contact with others and remain home as much as possible, leaving only for essential activities.” The league described those activities as “buying food, medicine, or other necessary supplies;
Entering yesterday, the NBA had seven players — four from the Brooklyn Nets, two from the Utah Jazz and one from the Detroit Pistons — known to have tested
CELEBRITIES GET VIRUS TESTS, RAISING CONCERNS OF INEQUALITY By M BIESECKER, MICHELLE R SMITH and TIM REYNOLDS Associated Press
positive for COVID-19. Later yesterday, the number of known cases within the NBA rose to eight after
WASHINGTON (AP) — Celebrities, politicians and professional athletes faced a backlash this week as many revealed that they had been tested for the coronavirus, even when they didn’t have a fever or other tell-tale symptoms. That’s fuelling a perception that the wealthy and famous have been able to jump to the head of the line to get tested while others have been turned away or met with long delays. The concerns over preferential treatment underscore a fundamental truth about inequalities baked into the American health care system — those with the financial means can often receive a different level of service. Asked about the issue Wednesday, President Donald Trump said the well-to-do and well-connected shouldn’t get priority for coronavirus tests. But the wealthy former reality star conceded that the rich and famous sometimes get perks. “Perhaps that’s been the story of life,” Trump said during a briefing at the
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OKLAHOMA City coach Billy Donovan meets with officials before an NBA basketball game against the Utah Jazz was postponed in Oklahoma City on Wednesday, March 11. (AP) obtaining critical medical services; providing necessary care for a family member in another household; or attending to some other emergency.”
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