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VOLUME:117 No.105, APRIL 27, 2020
HO US E & 12
THE PEOPLE’S PAPER: $1
SPORT: IT’S A NO-SAIL FOR FAMILY ISLAND REGATTA
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Another month Curfew to remain in place but monitored until the end of May By RASHAD ROLLE Tribune Senior Reporter rrolle@tribunemedia.net A RETURN to normalcy may be delayed for at least another month because the Minnis administration is expected to pass a resolution in the House of Assembly today that extends the COVID-19 state of emergency until May 30. The resolution that will be tabled today, and seen by The Tribune, says the state of emergency and the Emergency Powers (Covid 19) Regulations made on March 17 will continue until May 30 as will the subsequent orders Dr Minnis has issued. This means the national curfew and weekend lockdowns would remain in effect.
When he speaks today, Prime Minister Dr Hubert Minnis is also expected to give an address about food assistance and his administration’s economic plan for reopening the country while touching on the long promised rental assistance. There were 80 confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus up to press time and the country has a mortality rate of nearly 14 percent. The unpredictable nature of the virus, which has killed more than 200,000 people worldwide, has created uncertainty about when Dr Minnis’ draconian measures will end, with the potential exposure of healthcare workers at Princess Margaret Hospital to COVID-19 slowing progress toward reducing the restrictions.
NEARLY four weeks after Kimberly Johnson-Rolle became the country’s first COVID-19 death, her sister became one of Bimini’s latest confirmed COVID-19 cases on Saturday, a reality that has shocked but not shaken the resolve of the 58-year-old. Many would be deflated to catch the potentially deadly virus weeks after losing a loved one to the same disease, but Brenda Edgecombe is approaching
BACON & BLUE
CHEESE
SEE PAGE THREE
BACON & BLUE CHEESE BACON
& BLUE CHEESE $
9
By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net
FULL STORY - SEE BUSINESS
CRUISE PORT PRESSING AHEAD FOR $150M LOAN By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net
SEE PAGE THREE
life serenely, consuming scripture and isolating herself from her husband who tested negative for the virus last week. “When (Kimberly) first died it was really, really hard because we just assumed once we got her off the island that she would receive medical care and would be fine,” she said yesterday. “But right now I’m just taking it one day at a time and asking God to grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change and the courage to change the things that I can.”
GALLERIA’S BOSS TOLD: ‘HAND OVER ROYALTIES’ GALLERIA Cinemas’ principal has been ordered to pay “all outstanding royalty fees” over a failed restaurant venture that a Supreme Court judge branded “an abject failure” and “a bust”. However, Justice Ian Winder dismissed all other claims brought against Chris Mortimer by the local master franchisee after the Bennigan’s restaurant he operated at the Mall at Marathon closed for good in late 2012.
BIMINI CASE IS SISTER OF FIRST COVID DEATH By RASHAD ROLLE Tribune Senior Reporter rrolle@tribunemedia.net
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WHO KILLED LUANN?
NASSAU cruise port’s developer is aiming to raise up to $150m in bond financing next month to kick-start construction work amid the industry’s global shutdown. Mehmet Kutman, chairman of Global Ports Holding, confirmed to analysts in a recent conference call that its $250m investment in transforming Prince George Wharf into a worldclass destination will not be impacted by the fall-out from the COVID-19 crisis. FULL STORY - SEE BUSINESS
BOATMAN KILLED IN LANDING STORM KNOCKS POWER OUT FOR HUNDREDS ACCIDENT INSIGHT SPECIAL: Luann Joaquim died when she was hit by a car on her way home from work. That happened last November but the case is still throwing up more questions than answers. Read Tanya Smith-Cartwright’s report on Page 8
By FARRAH JOHNSON fjohnson@tribunemedia.net
A LIGHTNING storm forced Bahamas Power and Light to leave customers across New Providence without power for hours on Saturday. BPL said the power outage was a result of lightning striking the company’s overhead system with areas affected including Nassau East, South Star Estates, McKinney Drive and Carmichael Road.
SOME of the damage caused BPL also revealed “isolated outages” occurred that same day in Carmichael
By FARRAH JOHNSON fjohnson@tribunemedia.net
Road, Sunset Park and its surrounding areas and portions of Blue Hill Road and Pinewood, including Buttonwood Avenue. During the outage, disgruntled customers in affected areas took to social media to voice their complaints. Seven hours after issuing its first statement, BPL released another one notifying customers the issue had since been resolved in most areas.
EXUMA police are investigating a boating accident which left a man dead on Saturday. According to police shortly before 7pm, a 44-year-old man was running his 15-ft Boston Whaler in the vicinity of Exuma Point, Rolleville when he was thrown from the boat and hit by the propeller.
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PAGE 2, Monday, April 27, 2020
THE TRIBUNE
CORONAVIRUS CRISIS
Company joins virus fight
PRIME Minister Hubert Minnis tours the Blanco Chemicals plant with Blanco’s chief financial officer Richard Perry Pinder and sales manager Roman Knowles. Photo: OPM
BLANCO Chemicals is among the latest Bahamian manufacturers meeting the needs of the local community to help stop the spread of COVID-19 and simultaneously expanding their product lines. On Friday Prime Minister Dr Hubert Minnis received a private tour of the Blanco plant to see first-hand how the company’s new all-purpose disinfectant spray is made, packaged and tested. “I am so pleased to see local manufacturers meeting the needs of the local community and at the same time growing their businesses and creating employment opportunities,” Dr Minnis said. “This shows what we can do right here in The Bahamas.” Blanco currently produces a range of cleaning products and has recently started to produce an all-purpose disinfectant spray to help fill the recent uptick in demand for disinfectant products following the outbreak of COVID-19. Health officials recommend that cleaning
with a regular household disinfectant reduces the risk of spreading COVID-19. Blanco donated the first 5,000 bottles produced to a number of government agencies including the Ministry of Health and the Royal Bahamas Defence Force. The bottles and disinfectant are manufactured on site, and local print companies produce the labels for the spray bottles. The tour of the plant was led by Richard Perry Pinder, Blanco chief financial officer and Roman Knowles, sales manager. Dr Minnis is encouraging local entrepreneurs and businesses to take advantage of economic opportunities created by COVID-19, including face mask and hand sanitizer production, delivery services, among others. To encourage the expansion of the quickly growing face mask industry, Dr Minnis recently announced a ban on the importation of non-medical masks into The Bahamas.
HEALTH CHIEFS URGE PEOPLE TO MAINTAIN VACCINATIONS
By EARYEL BOWLEG ebowleg@tribunemedia.net
GLOBAL health experts have warned of the importance of maintaining vaccinations during the COVID-19 pandemic to ensure there is no revival of other diseases such as measles. Ahead of Vaccination Week in the Americas, the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), World Health Organization (WHO) sent out a press release on Friday highlighting the importance of vaccinations in preventing serious respiratory illness and preventing an outbreak of measles, saying it will help to protect people while health systems focus on COVID-19. Currently, three countries in the Americas — Argentina, Brazil and Mexico — are battling measles outbreaks, as well as dealing with COVID-19 cases. Last week, Deputy Chief Medical Officer Delon Brennen spoke about the challenge of ensuring immunisation continues during the current crisis. He said: “It is a challenge being able to get our young
children, especially infants to get their immunisation so there is some delay that is currently happening, some just out of fear, some out of closure of offices and so what we are currently doing is putting together a strategy to make sure we are redesigning parts of our immunisation programme to make it more community accessible and even thinking about doing delivering immunisation in people’s homes as opposed to waiting for them to come to us.” PAHO/WHO will hold Vaccination Week in the Americas until May 2, with the slogan “Love. Trust. Protect. #GetVax”. “Vaccines save lives and must be maintained even during the COVID-19 pandemic. The most vulnerables should not suffer the consequences of not getting the vaccines they need,” said PAHO director, Carissa Etienne. “I commend countries in this region that have already adapted their campaigns to this ‘new reality’ and are making great efforts to keep vaccinating in a safe manner.” The organisations reiterated the need to vaccinate
against serious respiratory illness from flu and to stop measles outbreaks, saying it will help to protect people while health systems focus on COVID-19. “Vaccination is key not just for our communities, but also for our healthcare workers. We vaccinate to protect them just as much as to protect ourselves,” said Cuauhtemoc Ruiz Matus, head of the comprehensive family immunisation programme at PAHO. Some countries have set up vaccination posts in schools presently empty because of coronavirus, as well as at supermarkets and pharmacies. Others have set up posts in banks – while special teams have been set up in some countries to immunise people in nursing homes and jails to reach at-risk groups. Under the regional initiative promoted by PAHO, the organisation revealed more than 806 million people of all ages have been vaccinated against a wide range of dangerous diseases since 2003. WHO said there were 413,308 confirmed measles cases reported to the agency as of November 5, 2019.
THE TRIBUNE
Monday, April 27, 2020, PAGE 3
CORONAVIRUS CRISIS from page one Mrs Edgecombe is one of five people in Bimini who were confirmed to have COVID-19 on Saturday. The other four, The Tribune understands, all live in the household of the elderly couple that tested positive for the virus early last week. In addition, all eight of Bimini’s confirmed cases attend the same church, Gateway Ministries, which hosted a well-attended funeral days before Mrs Johnson-Rolle’s death last month. Yesterday, Deputy Chief Medical Officer Dr Delon Brennen confirmed that a number of funerals that took place at the church, in addition to various social events, are a focus of investigation for the surveillance team of the Ministry of Health. He said officials tested 40 people on Bimini last week and are looking to do additional testing and contract tracing exercises. Mrs Johnson-Rolle’s death sparked concerns about the readiness of Family Islands for COVID19 after it took some 24-hours to get her from Bimini, where she began experiencing respiratory distress, to New Providence, where she died soon after arrival. Officials have said the lack of an isolation chamber to transport her contributed to the delay. Several of these chambers are now in the country. “We’ve solidified our transport mechanisms for the island so if people do have symptoms and the possibility of them
Bimini case is sister of first COVID death deteriorating quickly is there we will move them out of the island sooner rather than later,” Dr Brennen said yesterday. Mrs Edgecombe said she saw her sister last on Sunday, March 29, a day before she died. “She was sitting in her living room on the couch when I went there and she was saying she was feeling much better. My interaction with her just involved going and sitting and talking with her,” she recalled. The simplicity of their interaction has left Mrs Edgecombe perplexed by her positive diagnosis. She said her sister returned to Bimini in March after visiting Florida with her children and grandchildren, yet among all of the deceased’s close relatives, about 17 of whom were tested on Thursday, only she has tested positive for the virus, she said. “There’s so much about this virus that is unknown I feel. According to all the information that has been released about the possibility of contracting it, (Kimberly’s) children and husband were interacting with her more and taking care of her and I wasn’t, so how is it that only I have the virus?” she asked.
“It’s strange to me. It’s all just mixed up. If they surmise she got it on that trip, it was her, her daughter and three grandchildren with her and when she came back she had the flu, but I’m the one now with it.” When Mrs Johnson-Rolle died, her close relatives were told to go into quarantine. They were not tested, a fact that has disappointed some of them and other residents of Bimini. Although many COVID19 cases are believed to be asymptomatic, the government’s policy has been to test people in quarantine only if they have symptoms. Last week Dr Merceline Dahl-Regis, coordinator of the government’s COVID19 response, said this is an issue her team has wrestled with. “We had a real concern when we had restrictions on the resources of swabs,” she said at a press conference. “We agreed to follow these cases very closely and now that we are in a better position with resources, we will certainly revert to testing those who have completed 14 days of quarantine.” Meanwhile, Mrs Edgecombe said she has no symptoms and “feels fine.” Fortunately for residents of Bimini, she said she did
KIMBERLY Johnson-Rolle was country’s first COVID-19 death
Curfew to remain in place until end of May from page one When contacted for reaction, opposition leader Philip “Brave” Davis said yesterday that he has reached his boiling point. “I don’t see the end in sight,” he said. Given the draconian restrictions in place, Parliament should be allowed to play its oversight role more frequently, he said. “I’m concerned that the government is suggesting the suspension of civil liberties for a further 30 days and hopefully they will be able to demonstrate why that period is required or needed,” he said. “From where we observe and not having been privy to all of the medical data that they have because it was not shared with us, they may be able to persuade us why they think that period is needed. “Clearly having regard to
PMº Dr Hubert Minnis what we are seeing, we have lost six weeks. These measures have been in place and we still have not been able
to appreciate or understand where we are in this fight against this virus. It appears that we are losing the battle and having recognised that, we are seeking to push the reset button and that is troubling because we are imposing these measures that are having significant consequences to the lives of our people and our orderly way of life and what have we to date produced?” Last week, health officials could not say how long they expected the curfew and lockdown measures to remain in effect. However on Thursday Dr Merceline Dahl-Regis, co-ordinator of the government’s COVID19 response, said that they will extend into May. Minister of Health Dr Duane Sands said he did not know when the stringent measures would be relaxed. “The more adherent we are to these interventions
and initiatives, the sooner this will end,” he said last week. “And then, we will have to be deliberate, cautious and careful in a methodical rollout of the reopening. At this point, we have no time for that. We have no date when that is going to happen.” Editorial View - Page 6
PM APPOINTS ECONOMIC RECOVERY COMMITTEE
CABINET Office yesterday announced that Prime Minister Dr Hubert Minnis has appointed a COVID-19 economic recovery committee. “The public-private committee will make recommendations to the Cabinet on the long-term economic recovery of the Bahamas economy, including job creation and stimulating small business recovery and development in response to COVID-19,” the government announced in a statement. “The committee will focus on restoring the macroeconomy; restarting a competitive business environment; economic diversification; tourism and transport; financial services and labour.” Acting Financial Secretary Marlon
Johnson and businessman Ken Kerr, CEO of Providence Advisors, are cochairs of the committee. Other members are: Central Bank Governor John Rolle; former Central Bank Governor Wendy Craigg; Securities Commission Executive Director Christina Rolle; Small Business Development Centre Executive Director Davinia Blair-Grant; Delaney Partners Senior Partner John Delaney; Bahamas Chamber of Commerce and Employers Federation Chairman Khrystle Rutherford-Ferguson; Grand Bahama Chamber of Commerce Chair Greg Laroda; Suzanne Pattusch, executive vice-president, Bahamas Hotel & Tourism Association; Tanya McCartney, executive director, Bahamas Financial Services
Board; Nat Beneby, former Managing Director of RBC Royal Bank; Patrick Ward, president/CEO of Bahamas First General Insurance Co; Edison Sumner, principal of Sumner Trading Partners; Franklyn Butler, CEO/ President of Cable Bahamas Ltd; Obie Ferguson, president of the Bahamas Trade Union Congress and Matt Aubry, executive director of Organization for Responsible Governance. “The committee should be bold and creative in its recommendations,” Dr Minnis said. “We are in a new era. We need to think and act in new ways in order to recover as quickly as possible and to build a more dynamic and diverse economy. We have to enhance the use of digital technologies and delivery services.”
not venture amongst people after her initial quarantine period ended more than a week ago. Her positive test came back more than a week after her quarantine period ended. “I stayed at home and was in my yard and I walked on the beach,” she said, “There’s nowhere here to go and my son did the shopping for me. Everyone, once they hear COVID, it’s almost as if they are afraid to be around me. You could see the looks and so I just drove in my car and went to the beach.” She said her greatest concern now is how long it will take until she is declared free of the virus. She plans to use her time in isolation reading the bible and a prayer book, she said, and will talk through video to her husband, who is isolating from her downstairs in their home. Until health officials permit otherwise, the closest contact the pair will have will occur when he puts items for her in front of her bedroom door, she said. Up to press time, there were 80 confirmed COVID19 cases in the country after two more were announced yesterday.
PAGE 4, Monday, April 27, 2020
THE TRIBUNE
CORONAVIRUS CRISIS By RASHAD ROLLE Tribune Senior Reporter rrolle@tribunemedia.net PRIME Minister Dr Hubert Minnis has granted further exemptions to lawyers seeking to do business during the COVID-19 shutdown. According to a list of exempted businesses and undertakings dated April 24, lawyers are now exempted if they are “required to attend an in-person court hearing; attend their office for the purpose of preparing for a court hearing; advise people living in institutions or deprived of their liberty; discharge instructions in existing criminal or urgent civil matters or instructions in new criminal or urgent civil matters where this cannot be done by visual means; assist in the performance of urgent commercial transactions; act in connection with the
Minnis grants lawyers further exemptions execution of wills subject in all cases to producing identification if requested to do so or accompany persons on bail with reporting conditions to a designated police station for the sole purpose of complying with such conditions.” Khalil Parker, president of the Bar Association, said in a communication to Bar members the wider exemptions were sought by the Bar Council in consultation with Chief Justice Brian Moree.
“While law firms are not yet permitted to open to the public, the said exemption is intended to assist attorneys in addressing urgent matters as we ready our respective practices and profession for the future,” he said. Dr Minnis is expected to give a COVID-19 update in the House of Assembly this morning. Last week Dr Merceline Dahl-Regis, coordinator of the government’s COVID19 response, said health officials will recommend the
24-hour curfew and restrictions continue beyond April and that there be no further relaxation of restrictions. Dr Minnis announced a 9pm-5am curfew on March 19, and ordered that business operations, with few exceptions, be suspended. Law firms are among the businesses that have laid off some workers amid the restrictions on businesses. Progressive Liberal Party (PLP) Chairman Fred Mitchell responded last week to social media
criticism of the closure of the law firm of PLP leader Philip “Brave” Davis by pointing to a statement Mr Davis made on the matter in the PLP’s recent economic policy report. “The government allowed the courts to shut down which meant that no commercial litigation is possible,” Mr Davis said. “In addition, the government closed departments responsible for payment of VAT on conveyances, the registration of legal
deeds and documents including conveyances. Law firms cannot operate their businesses and this has in part resulted in the eight largest law firms in the country collectively laying off their ancillary staff and imposing cuts on their lawyers of 25 percent. This is unfortunately a choice which was formed on my partners as well but I am still seeking to make the general point. The result of that was to shut down all commerce in the legal sector.”
FNM ACCUSES PLP OF ‘DISGRACEFUL & VICIOUS’ ATTACK ON PM’S WIFE
HEALTH WORKERS TESTED FOR COVID-19 By RASHAD ROLLE Tribune Senior Reporter rrolle@tribunemedia.net ABOUT 185 healthcare workers were tested on Saturday for the novel coronavirus, with results expected today or tomorrow, according to Deputy Chief Medical Officer Dr Delon Brennen. His comment came as the country added two more confirmed cases of COVID-19 yesterday for a total of 80, with 792 people in quarantine and 22 cases recovered. Up to press time, 11 people had died from the virus. Results of the tests for healthcare workers will determine who can return to work after Princess Margaret Hospital suffered the loss of some 200 exposed healthcare workers last week, 96 of whom are doctors and 62 of whom are nurses. Meanwhile, Dr Brennen said to date there have been 985 COVID-19 tests in the country. The two latest confirmed cases include a 49 and 23 year old, both New Providence women who are isolating at home. Last week Health Minister Dr Duane Sands revealed that healthcare workers were exposed to a COVID-19 positive patient on PMH’s surgical ward. The staff crisis developed after a patient from
the Robert Smith Unit of Sandilands Rehabilitation Centre was referred to PMH for further medical management on April 5. Dr Sands said the patient received treatment at PMH and was discharged on April 15 to Sandilands Rehabilitation Centre. “Days later,” he said, “the Medical Surgical Ward II of PMH was declared compromised on discovery of a confirmed positive COVID-19 case on the ward” and was subsequently closed while the patient of the Robert Smith Unit was returned to PMH on April 19 to be tested for COVID-19. The next day it was confirmed that he had contracted the virus and the patient is now receiving care at the Doctors Hospital West facility. Dr Sands said the remaining 39 patients at the Robert Smith Unit “were immediately placed in an isolation cohort and the unit was sanitised. Forty-six staff members at Sandilands were identified for risk exposure assessment,” he said. Meanwhile, five new cases were announced on Bimini on Saturday including two girls: one 15 and the other 11-years-old. To date, there are 64 confirmed cases in New Providence, seven in Grand Bahama, eight in Bimini and one in Cat Cay.
Photos: Terrel W Carey Sr/Tribune Staff
THE Free National Movement has accused the Progressive Liberal Party of launching a “vicious and disgraceful attack” on Patricia Minnis amid the COVID-19 pandemic. “As Bahamians and the entire world continue to fight the deadly coronavirus, the woeful PLP has decided it’s time to get back to politics and in doing so launched a relentless barrage of partisan attacks every day,” the FNM said in a press release. “Their latest is a vicious and disgraceful attack on the prime minister’s wife. All Bahamians should condemn the PLP for conceiving of and attacking the wife of the country’s leader at a time of national crisis. Despite making multiple commitments to working in unison with the government, the PLP has done nothing but sought to make political opportunity out of a serious crisis that has taken lives. “Besides making contradictory statements as the FNM government works to unite the country in this deadly struggle, the woeful PLP under the old and tired Philip Brave Davis has sunk to new lows, such as the attack on the prime minister’s wife. Mrs Minnis has dedicated herself to assisting families. The difference between Mrs Minnis and Davis and his leadership team is she doesn’t feel the need to seek the spotlight for helping others. “Sadly, in these troubling times the woeful PLP under Davis still values headlines over real work, and scoring political points over solutions. From first questioning the efforts to fight the coronavirus, to then saying efforts weren’t aggressive enough, and now back to criticising quarantine efforts, the PLP’s constantly shifting stances would give Bahamians whiplash if they paid Davis much attention. The PLP leader demonstrates each day that he should never be prime minister of The Bahamas.” The FNM’s statement came days after PLP Vice-Chairman Holly Pearce accused the Office of the Spouse of being inactive during this crisis. Ms Pearce’s statement said in part: “To date, the Office of the Spouse has not released a statement in support of the efforts of those on the frontline; to date, the Office of the Spouse has not committed any portion of the annual budget to assist, subsidize, or relieve the burden on the Ministry of Social Services. Women across the nation wonder where is that voice that advocated so greatly in 2017? Where is that rising female champion that encouraged women to ‘speak to the issues that we face in our country?’ What assistance is the Office of the Spouse offering to the children of so many single mothers who struggle?” The Office of the Spouse of the Prime Minister was created in 2018 to advance the agenda of Bahamian women and girls. Mrs Minnis’ post is unpaid and she has a small clerical staff. The office operates out of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
SOME HOMES FOR ELDERLY RUNNING LOW ON SUPPLIES By EARYEL BOWLEG ebowleg@tribunemedia.net
SUPPLIES are running short at some elderly homes and for charity during the COVID-19 pandemic. The Reverend Kendal Capron, who runs The Good Samaritan Senior Citizen’s Home on Claridge Road, told The Tribune that food, water, adult diapers and cleaning products such as bleach are running low. Usually, items are donated and Rev Capron said while he appreciates help from people such as the area’s MP, Marvin Dames, he needs assistance. “They don’t give the cash anymore, they don’t give the cheque anymore,” he explained. “There’s not much family
members is coming to help... some will come but with 30 maybe five of the relatives would come and would donate now and then when they could.” “It’s very, very expensive to take care of elderly people. People don’t understand that. Our light bill right now is over $5,000. Every month, mostly they put on $1,000 on the Good Samaritan home and we know we don’t use that amount of current.” “We have to pay the electrical bill. We have the phone bill. We have the cable and all of that we have to pay and way over $60,000 a month to run that home.” Rev Capron also claimed that prices at food stores had sharply increased. He
said: “When you go to the food store now what’s for a dollar is now five dollars, now whenever you go in the food store the price is doubled, some is tripled – price is that way.” Frances Ledee, at Persis Rodgers Home For The Aged, said protective gowns are “desperately” needed as they are unable to find them. “There was a contact we had with the health people how we could get it and the cost would be. Maybe one for each person and how much they will give.” Lysol, diapers, alcohol, bleach and cleaning wipes were high in demand for Ms Ledee as well as money with a need for donations to help keep the home going. She said of residents:
“Their family aren’t able to pay much. We pay on an average, the average old person in this home pays about $379 or so per month. That’s what we charge them –- that’s a little bit. “So, we’ve had to always try to raise funds to keep the home going you see and so we’re always looking for financial contributions, but we’ve had a hard time this year because you know Dorian was a necessary need that people had to transfer their contribution I know but it affected us and then here we have this other pandemic.” Sean Brennen, director general for the Bahamas Red Cross, is seeking cash donations to pay food and personal hygiene parcels. The charity is also providing
$100 and $50 food vouchers to use at Super Value grocery stores. He said: “There’ve been several instances where there’ve been back orders but are slowly getting a flow of supplies. So the wholesalers have been providing us with items.” “What we’ve also done is we’ve sought to purchase items overseas. So we’re tapping into other Red Cross national societies and we’re trying to do bigger purchases, group purchases, or bulk purchases.” Mr Brennen said the Bahamas Red Cross would love to have more volunteers but are limited due to the need to reduce social gatherings. Volunteers are asked when specialised skills are
required. He said psychosocial support was one area of concern. He said: “We realise that families now, in several instances, the whole economy has been turned completely upside down. You have families now who are confined to their homes. You have a lot of family members now who are uncertain pertaining to job prospects and job security, their ability to feed their family. “So we have a psychosocial support hotline where individuals are able to contact us and just to help them through in terms of managing the different levels or different types of stress that they are confronted with at this particular time.” The hotline number is 828-4121.
THE TRIBUNE
Monday, April 27, 2020, PAGE 5
CORONAVIRUS CRISIS
ONLINE ZOOM MEETING IS DISRUPTED BY GAY PORN By TANYA SMITH-CARTWRIGHT ts-cartwright @tribunemedia.net
TOP: from left: Shantia Mackey, Latisha Woodside and Julietta Bain; Left: Patchranell Evans (left) and Jean Ale (right); below: Emmanuel Louis (left) and Wilkins Oscar. Photos: Shawn Hanna/Tribune Staff
Seven fined after playing dominoes during lockdown By FARRAH JOHNSON fjohnson@tribunemedia.net SEVEN people who were caught playing dominoes outside during the national curfew were charged in Magistrate’s Court on Friday. Julietta Bain, 38; Latisha Woodside, 26; Shantia Mackey, 41; Jean Ale, 54; Emmanuel Louis, 42; Patchranell Evans, 27; and Wilkins Oscar, 26, appeared before Magistrate Samuel McKinney after officers found them on Cumberbatch Alley around 4.50pm last Thursday. They all pleaded guilty to violating the curfew and were each fined $400 or four months at the Bahamas Department of Correctional Services, except for Bain who was given a $250 fine or three months in prison and Woodside, who was ordered to pay $500 or spend three months at the BDCS.
Prosecutor Bridgette Strapp said officers acting on information went to the Cumberbatch Alley area where they observed a group of people sitting outside and playing dominoes. Sgt Strapp said the people were asked whether they were aware of the curfew and if they had good reason to be outdoors, but they failed to give police a satisfactory answer. As a result, they were taken to the Central Detective Unit (CDU) where they denied committing the offence during a record of interview under caution. Bain told Magistrate McKinney that she had only left her house to collect “some funds” from her friend. Her sister, Latisha Woodside, told Magistrate McKinney she went with Bain to get $10 to buy something for their kids to eat, because they did not have any food or water at home. When asked why she felt the
need to accompany Bain knowing that a national curfew was being enforced, Woodside said that there were a lot of girls in their neighbourhood that wanted to fight them, so she wanted to walk with Bain to make sure she arrived safely. Louis, on the other hand, told the magistrate he had only gone outdoors to get some water from the area pump, because he had none in his home. Still, he admitted that on his way back he saw a co-worker that he wanted to hail, so he carried the bottles of water home and went back around the corner to speak with his friend. In a separate matter, Jonell Henderson, 20, was charged after officers found her on Gladstone Road and John F Kennedy Drive around 8.40pm on April 22. She pleaded guilty to the curfew violation and was fined $400 or four months at the BDCS. During the
hearing, she said she was outside because she had just come from getting medication from the pharmacy for her grandmother and stopped by a friend to “discuss school work” on her way home. Malancus Forbes, 49, also appeared before Senior Magistrate Derence Rolle-Davis for violating the national curfew after police found him on Arawak Cay around 4.50am on April 23. He pleaded guilty to the charge and was fined $300 or 20 days in prison. When given an opportunity to speak, Forbes said that he was trying to catch “one or two fish” because he was hungry. He also claimed to have a toothache that made it hard for him to sleep at night and told Magistrate RolleDavis that he had to “get out to the saltwater” because painkillers did nothing to numb his discomfort.
THOMPSON: LOCKDOWN WORKING FOR GRAND BAHAMA By DENISE MAYCOCK Tribune Freeport Reporter dmaycock@tribunemedia.net
KWASI Thompson, State Minister for Grand Bahama, says the lockdowns are having a positive affect in Grand Bahama where the number of COVID cases has not exceeded seven. “We are pleased that we have not seen an increase in the numbers in Grand Bahama. To date, our numbers remain at seven, with two recovered, two deceased, and one remains hospitalised,” he reported this week at the Office of the Prime Minister in Freeport. “Now is not the time to be complacent or let our guard down. We must remain focused on battling this virus by staying home and complying with social distancing,” he said.
Minister Thompson is urging residents to adhere to the curfew and lockdowns, and social distancing measures put in place to curtail the spread of the virus. He noted that “we still have far too many people on the roads up and about during the 24 hour lockdown. The public is reminded to remain home unless you are an essential worker or visiting a place that has been exempted”. In terms of social distance measures, Mr Thompson noted that some stores are not complying. “We are also advised that some stores in Grand Bahama are not complying with social distancing inside their stores and outside the stores. In addition, some residents are entering stores without masks.
MINISTER Kwasi Thompson “I want to strongly remind store owners to put in place measures that will ensure social distancing inside and outside, and ensure that no one is allowed to enter your establishment unless wearing a mask.” He stated that the government remains focused on ensuring adequate facilities for the treatment of COVID-19 cases are available on the island.
In addition to existing modules at the Rand Hospital and the Cancer Association Building, which is being prepared to receive patients, Mr Thompson said a new isolation facility is also being completed at the Rand Hospital. • BAD weather battered the Samaritan’s Purse field hospital in Grand Bahama but the tent facility was not structurally compromised, according to the minister of health. In a post to his Facebook page yesterday, Dr Duane Sands said the tent facility, which has become a makeshift Rand Memorial Hospital after RMH was damaged during Hurricane Dorian last year, was “buffeted with wind and rain”. “It has not been compromised structurally,” his post said. “There was some water intrusion...
but no patient (22) was injured or wet. A smaller administration tent was blown in. Minister (of State for Disaster Preparedness) Iram Lewis and (hospital administrator) Sharon Williams are on site now.” Dr Sands said patients will be moved into the IAT building or RMH ER if the weather persists.
A MEETING of experts on COVID-19 analysis was disrupted on Friday when the video messaging service used was interrupted with gay pornography. The University of The Bahamas was using Zoom for the forum on a scientific analysis of mathematical models to assess the COVID-19 outbreak in The Bahamas. The meeting started on schedule at noon but was soon interrupted with the first presenter, Dr Danny Davis, the university’s director of institutional strengthening, only ten minutes into his presentation. Instead of the scientific analysis, screens were showing gay pornography. Dean of Graduate Studies and Research Dr Vik Nair, a professor of sustainable tourism, alerted those attending. “We’ve been hacked! End the meeting, end the meeting,” he said. Not realising what happened, Dr Davis eventually apologised and shut down the meeting. The forum was also intended to present information on the impact of structural weaknesses in Bahamian society on the country’s COVID-19 response. Zoom has been widely used after the coronavirus outbreak for video conferencing – but a number of incidents of “Zoom-bombing” have taken place in which other people join in video meetings and disrupt them. The software manufacturers released a new security update this week, Zoom 5.0, in an attempt to tackle concerns.
STUDENTS SET TO GET FOOD VOUCHERS FOOD vouchers for students enrolled in the National School Lunch Programme in New Providence will be issued tomorrow and Wednesday from 9am – 3pm. The vouchers for pre and primary school students can be collected at their respective schools. Vouchers for all secondary school students can be collected from the following locations: C I Gibson Gymnasium for students who attend the following schools: D W Davis Jr; H O Nash Jr; L W Young Jr; T A Thompson Jr; C C Sweeting Sr; C I Gibson Sr; C R Walker Sr and Doris Johnson Sr. Parents of those who attend the following schools can get vouchers from A F Adderley Gymnasium: A F Adderley Jr; Anatol Rodgers High; C H Reeves Jr; C V Bethel Sr; Government High; R M Bailey; S C McPherson Jr. Parents and guardians of students enrolled in the following schools will be contacted by the schools to advise of distribution procedures: Stapledon School; Marjorie Davis Institute; Centre for the Deaf; PACE and Erin Gilmore School for the Blind. Those collecting vouchers must present a government issued photo identification and are also required to wear a face mask/covering.
PAGE 6, Monday, April 27, 2020
THE TRIBUNE
The Tribune Limited NULLIUS ADDICTUS JURARE IN VERBA MAGISTRI “Being Bound to Swear to The Dogmas of No Master”
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No letting up on emergency measures now ANOTHER month of emergency measures. That’s what’s expected to be announced by Prime Minister Dr Hubert Minnis today in the House of Assembly. We know the drill by now. We know what’s needed. And now we know we need to stay the course a little longer. The signs were already there that the closure would be extended. Last week, advisor Dr Merceline Dahl-Regis talked of the number of cases expected by mid-May, and a day with five new cases over the weekend showed that things have not slowed up sufficiently yet. Add to that the ramped up testing that is just starting to take place and a relaxation of emergency measures wasn’t likely yet. It’s a time when we need cool heads – so PLP leader Philip ‘Brave’ Davis announcing that he’s at boiling point is not helpful. So much for not making this about politics. He says we have lost six weeks and we are “losing the battle” yet talks of the imposition on our lives brought on by the emergency measures.
That doesn’t bode well for how he would have led the battle. Our current situation was also not helped by the situation with one case that led to the exposure of 200 healthcare workers last week in both Princess Margaret Hospital and Sandilands Rehabilitation Centre. Add to that the patients who were confirmed with the virus or who had to be isolated as a result and it was a sizeable impact from a single incident. Without that, might we have been closer to easing up? It certainly might have pushed things further back. Dr Dahl-Regis also suggested that this might be the week we get a better idea of when we can predict cases will have reached a peak in The Bahamas. A peak will not mean an end to the battle, but it will take us closer. No one likes these measures. No one likes being stuck indoors waiting to be allowed out again and to get back to normal. But if we are to beat this virus, we must keep going. Stop too soon and all the good work will have been for nothing. That really would be a way to lose six weeks.
Hit and run victim’s family deserves answers THERE is something very unusual about the manner in which a hit and run investigation has been conducted. Last November, Luann Joaquim got out of a taxi to walk to her home, right by a police station, when she was hit by a car. She died two days later in hospital – but it is what happened in the immediate aftermath that is concerning. The car in the incident sped on without stopping. Another motorist saw and gave chase but was stopped himself by police for speeding. However, that motorist is almost certain the car he was pursuing turned into the police barracks. Family members have asked the police for answers – but received little cooperation. When family pointed out there were at least ten CCTV cameras and building cameras that the speeding car would have passed, an officer by the name of Cash told them the force did not have the manpower or funds to
have someone sit and go through the footage. Can you imagine? Video footage of a hit and run killer might be right there, and the family given such a snub. We have a new Commissioner of Police since then, Paul Rolle, and last week he suspended two officers after videos circulated of a liquor store open contrary to regulations. That’s a good start in contrast to his predecessor not suspending officers during investigations despite more serious allegations. Time, then, for him to bring that new approach to an allegation of such a dismissive response to a hit and run death, especially with a claim of the car going into police premises. To his credit, Commissioner Rolle has promised to find out more. The family deserves answers – not just over what happened but about why they were snubbed. We shall hold him to his word.
A plan is needed THE news that several COVID-19 cases were emerging on Bimini provoked a lot of response. This from Mandela: “As small as the Island of Bimini is, from the first incident of the virus the whole island was supposed to be tested to rule anyone with or without out, that should have been done from the get-go, now they have a situation to deal with, I hope they are on Cat Cay at this moment testing the people there. A plan is needed, he who fails to plan, plans to fail. It can’t be that we are running around like a headless chicken.” And this from DDK: “Somehow the isolation and quarantine measures do not seem to be working. Why can we get no indication as to the severity of these cases? Are they critical and life-threatening or manageable? There seems to be no sign that the Bahamas MOH is capable
of assisting the afflicted. There is no significant, helpful information sharing here.” Nael had this to say: “I’m in Bimini. They had 50 test kits. They tested 50 people that came in contact with the lady and her husband that tested positive last week. Of those 50, 5 tested positive. So far all the cases are all manageable. “Strange times, but BImini will get through it. Be safe everyone.” Finally, ThisIsOurs wrote: “I’d like to see the testing plan. Which populations are to be tested and why we chose/what strategic advantage we hope to gain by testing in that
order. Some will be obvious like health care workers. “The number in each population to be tested. How did you arrive at that number. How you will monitor those already tested to ensure they don’t get infected? “The resources we need to complete each population test. People, training, kits, PPE’s, money etc. Indicate where the shortfalls are and when theyll be encountered and what is the plan to mitigate/get the necessary supplies. “How will we tackle the shantytowns and what is the plan to get rid of them immediately. This virus is the canary in the coal mine “What is the plan if we have a hurricane? This would be apocalypse planning territory but completely probable. Even a minor hurricane could be disastrous in terms of social distancing both in terms of buying supplies and shelter during
Getting ready for long journey EDITOR, The Tribune MY LATE uncle Geoffrey had a marvellous, if somewhat convoluted, way of setting various events in motion, the simplest of which might be to go home from a late night party, whereupon he might say to his wife: “Darling, why don’t we commence, to begin, to prepare, to get ready to go home? And so might it be said that Dr Minnis today, Sunday, April 26, by the appointment of an “Economic Recovery Committee”, is commencing to begin to prepare to get ready for the long road to economic recovery for the Bahamas. It is perhaps apropos then that I might voice some of my own thoughts, on what we historically have done right, and what in retrospect was less than advantageous to us economically. Downtown Nassau, (between George Street and Victoria Avenue) has historically been the economic centre and life- blood of New Providence, if not the Bahamas. From bootlegging times (1920-1932) to the early days of Tourism, Downtown Nassau has been the epicentre of life in the Bahamas. The four pillars of that life might be the Government, the Judiciary, Financial Services, and Tourism. Included in that mix, would be the Out Island Produce and Fish Market on Woodes Rodgers Wharf and the Straw Market further west. Bay Street with its quaint little buildings, converted to retail shops, gave an old world charm and flavour to “Little Nassau”. One could be forgiven for asking what happened of course, but like a cancer metastasizing through the body, one thing has led to another, and Downtown Nassau was on the verge of collapsing, even before the Corona Virus took everything down. Over the years, somehow we became caught up in a “numbers” game. Not Web Shop Numbers, but tourism numbers, culminating this year with our Minister gallantly declaring that “we had recorded seven million tourists last year”. As the Cruise Industry became
LETTERS letters@tribunemedia.net more and more competitive, each cruise line began a spiral cutting of its cruise fares. This widened the market for its cruises, but bargain basement passengers had nothing to leave behind when the ship pulled out. So fierce was our love of numbers that the cruise lines felt, and became, empowered to dictate their needs and greeds to us. No longer were they prepared to close their on board shops and bars while in port, “or else they would not bring their millions of passengers here”. Since we are now at “Ground Zero” maybe this is a good time to pull the main sheet in and tell them how it has to be going forward. Close your Shops and Casinos while you are in the Port. If guests don’t get off the ship add a tax that the ship can pay or assess on the passengers. Their choice. And our hotels too, notwithstanding the huge encouragement which we happily lavish on them just for being a hotel, do not want their guests leaving their hotel properties and spending their money anywhere else. Nassau was far too dangerous to venture out they’d say. This, notwithstanding the thousands of cruise passengers milling about all day long. And as the legal fraternity gravitated over the years from being barristers to becoming solicitors, many of these firms looked west to the honey pots of Lyford Cay, Albany, and Old Fort Bay. Some, of course, have hedged their bets with one foot still in town, but the economic fallout has definitely been felt. This has left a glut now of empty office space, much of which has been taken up as Government Office space and unfortunately a lot has been taken up for Criminal Courts and all of the attendant dangerous activity that that entails. Governments too I think, for years and years now, have had to weigh the benefits of good public transportation, against the huge benefits of import duties on motor vehicles. Yes, we do have a very
narrowly focused Jitney service, but too narrowly focused to be of much good to a broader population, particularly if it were to cater to visitors. All of that is to say, without sounding too “Trumpian”, would this not be a good time to make the Bahamas first, to benefit from future Tourism. Bay Street is going to be empty for some months to come, and maybe now is the time to consider some much needed change to take it off life-support. There must be a million plans on as many shelves, of what could be done, or what might be good to do, but we need to create some incentive to share the hotel guests with the rest of the country. Maybe, the retail branch shops in the hotels could be phased, or regulated, out. I have no doubt that the foreign owned hotels can find alternate purposes for these shop spaces. I see no benefit to the Bahamas from foreign real estate landlords – NONE. In other countries they have Park and Ride Options and we can do it here too. Take parking of Bay Street completely, and make it two lanes east bound only, with one for normal vehicular traffic and another for downtown commuter buses. Maybe reinforce it by putting a planted meridian down the middle, with native trees and shrubs. Shirley Street can be the West Bound route, similarly structured. Create organized, paid, secured, parking facilities at Clifford Park and Malcolm Park or some other large parking area, with scheduled and frequent buses to take people into town and move them around. No side road vehicular traffic, just one big loop between Mackey Street and Chippingham. And maybe now is the time to bring the boundary of the Over the Hill tax incentives from Gregory Arch all the way out to the waterfront. At the end of the day the ONLY number we as a people should be interested in are the dollars that our guests leave with us. BRUCE G. RAINE Nassau April 26, 2010
THE TRIBUNE
Monday, April 27, 2020, PAGE 7
44-YEAR-OLD BOATMAN KILLED IN LANDING ACCIDENT from page one
The victim was pulled from the water in an unresponsive state and later pronounced dead by medical personnel. No one else was injured during the incident. Family members have identified the victim as Antonio “Rat” Rolle. His older brother Hansel Rolle, told The Tribune he
witnessed the tragic incident unfold. “He was taking the boat to the ramp to pull the trailer and take it out of the water and apparently he got thrown out of the boat and the boat turned around, came back and the propeller cut him in his head,” he said. “We was in the area and we saw what happened and then we went to assist him, but unfortunately when the guy dived him up he was unresponsive.”
Asked how quickly they were able to respond to the accident, he added: “Well, what happened was the area in the water where he landed was kind of dark so when he got flung from the boat he was submerged and they really had to look for him. I reckon he was underwater for about 10 minutes.” Mr Rolle said his brother’s death has affected him greatly because they were extremely close. “He was a
people’s person,” he said. “Anybody could have really get along with him. He was funny, he loved to dance and he was an entertainer, so right now it’s rough.” His mother, Selma Woodside, also told this newspaper her son’s death has left a big gap in her life. “I live in Nassau and he lives in Exuma, so I really can’t believe it and I haven’t shut my eye since I got that news,” she said.
VICTIM: Antonio Rolle
Mrs Woodside said her son was a mason by profession and had only gone out on the boat that day to “try and catch one or two fish”. Insisting he would be dearly missed, she added: “Antonio was a down to earth person, he could get along with anybody and I mean anybody. If he had it, you can get it and he would make you laugh if you were feeling sad.”
Storm knocks power out for hundreds across island from page one “Bahamas Power and Light Company Ltd (BPL) wishes to confirm that all our customers affected by the lightning strikes that affected our overhead lines this morning have been restored to service, with the exception of customers in the South Ocean area,” the statement read. “Our team is on site affecting mechanical repairs, and we expect to have those customers reconnected in approximately three hours. We thank our customers for their patience as we continue to make repairs, and we again encourage our customers to stay safe, and observe the shelter in place orders.” BPL’s overhead system was not the only thing that was struck by lightning on Saturday morning. A video capturing lightning striking a home off Village
Road — hours after the Bahamas Department of Meteorology issued a severe thunderstorm warning — made its rounds on social media yesterday. In the short clip, a person is filming the lightning storm through a window in their house. The footage itself captures two Jeeps in a driveway being pummelled by rain from the overcast sky, seconds before a quick flash of lightning strikes and sets off a car alarm. Startled by the sudden flash, the person capturing the video drops their phone, while another person in the background shouts out an expletive. One Facebook user said the lightning struck her neighbour’s house — just three doors down from her own residence. “Now the cable is off (because) all of the boxes are fried,” the woman said in a Facebook post. “Even my pups that were outside started
yelping and all ran inside. It felt like an explosion was right on top of our house.” On Saturday, the Bahamas Department of Meteorology issued a severe thunderstorm warning for New Providence, Eleuthera and its surrounding waters. “AT 8.40 am EDT, lightning detector, radar and satellite imagery projected clusters of thunderstorms and moderate to heavy rainfall associated with prefrontal activity moving towards and across the warning areas,” a forecaster reported. The public was warned that some of the thunderstorms would be severe at times, causing “strong gusty winds, dangerous lightning, heavy downpours, hail and possible waterspout or tornadic activity.” Residents were also warned not to seek shelter under trees or in water since they can become lightning conductors.
I love my new dome home, says Dorian survivor
By LEANDRA ROLLE Tribune Staff Reporter lrolle@tribunemedia.net DORIAN survivor Uriel Delancey can feel his life returning to some sort of normalcy now he’s living “comfortably” in one of the government’s temporary housing domes along with his wife. The 54-year-old Spring City resident was left displaced after Hurricane Dorian ripped his home apart in early September. “My home was totally destroyed. I lost everything,” he told The Tribune. After losing his home unexpectedly to the monster storm, Mr Delancey said he applied to the Department of Social Services for a dome for him and his family until their house can be repaired. After several weeks of waiting, Mr Delancey said he was surprised when a social services representative called and said his family had been approved
to live in the temporary housing structure. He said: “The next day they gave me the keys for the dome. A lot of people were saying they were too small, and they didn’t make too much sense and all that but to tell you the truth, I love it. It’s comfortable and the only thing I could say is my wife and I are here for the time being, but it’s not enough for when my two boys reach when the flights (resume) because they have to come from Miami.” Travel is currently restricted due to the COVID-19 pandemic. “It is not enough for the family, but it’s enough for two persons and it’s comfortable for us two,” he added. Mr Delancey said he initially hoped for the structure to be placed on his property, but that did not work out as planned. “There are a couple people who have domes on their properties and that’s where I wanted mine and I wanted to start building because I had
SOME of the damage caused after a lightning storm forced Bahamas Power and Light to leave customers across New Providence without power for some time on Saturday.
MAN ACCUSED OF BURGLARY
By FARRAH JOHNSON fjohnson@tribunemedia.net
THE TYPE of dome which is now home to Uriel Delancey and his family.
some lumber on my property to start building, but when I came back from getting my boys sorted out in Miami, they stole all of my lumber,” he said. “That’s one of the reasons why I wanted the dome on the property, to watch my supplies.” He said the site is “about five minutes” away from his home. According to the Bahamas Disaster Reconstruction Authority, the domes can accommodate four to six people and can withstand 180-mile-perhour winds. However, Mr Delancey is apprehensive about this, telling this newspaper: “No, no way… They don’t feel strong, you walk and it feels shaky.” Noting his family would “have nowhere else to go” if another hurricane were to hit the island, Mr Delancey said he is remaining hopeful that the island will be spared from having to experience another storm. Mr Delancey does not know
how long he and his wife will have to remain at the temporary housing site, but he said they are eager for their home to be rebuilt. “As soon as I could get my house started or built back, I will try to move out as quickly as possible,” he told The Tribune. “But that’s going to take some time because I’m waiting on the (Small Home Repair Programme), so whenever they start back up.” Still, Mr Delancey said he is grateful to God to have a place to rest his head as many are still struggling to find shelter on the storm impacted island. He said: “It’s very hard. It’s been tough because you have a lot of single mothers over here you see and they need help and it’s tough on them so every little help they could get would be helpful to them. “A lot of them have rights to the domes but are (currently) stuck in Nassau and can’t get access to them.”
A 27-YEAR-OLD man, accused of breaking into a woman’s house and robbing her earlier this month was remanded to prison on Friday. Emmanuel Johnson appeared before Senior Magistrate Derence Rolle-Davis charged with one count of burglary, stealing and receiving. It is alleged Johnson broke into Christonia Knowles’ residence between 3am and 4.30am on April 13. It is further alleged he stole her black Samsung S9 phone which was valued at $800. Johnson was not required to plead to the charge and the case was adjourned to June 16 for service of a voluntary bill of indictment. Bail was denied and he was remanded to the Bahamas Department of Correctional Services in the interim. He has a right to apply to the Supreme Court for bail. In a separate matter, a 29-year-old woman charged with assaulting an officer and resisting arrest was granted $2,000 bail. Her trial is set for June 17. Ashley Clarke appeared before Senior Magistrate Derence RolleDavis charged with disorderly behaviour, assaulting an officer, resisting arrest, behaving disorderly in a police station and failing to give her name and address after committing a traffic offence. The prosecution said Clarke behaved in a disorderly manner and assaulted Corporal 3071 Rolle on Independence Highway on March 17. It is also alleged she resisted arrest and continued to behave in a disorderly fashion when taken to the East Street Police Station.
FIRE DAMAGES HOME AND TWO VEHICLES A FIRE damaged a portion of a home and two vehicles in Crooked Island on Saturday. According to a police report, shortly after noon, officers responded to the scene of a fire at a home in the Cabbage Hill settlement. They met part of the home ablaze as well as two cars. Officers, with the help of residents, were able to extinguish the fire. No one was injured and the cause of the fire is not known.
THE STORIES BEHIND THE NEWS
MONDAY, APRIL 27, 2020
“
The driver left her to die in the road like a dog
So what happened to Luann Joaquim? By TANYA SMITH-CARTWRIGHT ts-cartwright @tribunemedia.net WHAT seemed to be a routine ride home resulted in total tragedy and unanswered questions for the family of Luann Joaquim. At about 10pm on November 13 last year Luann completed her shift at Bruno’s on Arawak Cay where she worked as a bartender. She headed home by taxi on West Bay Street and as she got out of the vehicle to walk the last yards to her home – just feet away from a police station – she was hit by a tan coloured Nissan Elgrand, sending her spinning many feet above ground and landing on her head by Sands Beach Bar and Grill, yards away from where she was hit. The driver of the Nissan – licence plate, either AB1617 or AD1617 – made a split second decision and fled the scene. She chose not to get our of her car and see if the person she had hit needed help. As chance would have it another motorist saw what happened and gave chase in his own vehicle only for minutes later to be stopped by police for speeding and reckless driving. The route of the chase was from West Bay Street to Bay Street, to Parliament Street and eventually on to East Street where the police stopped the chasing car while the hit-and-run car sped away, eventually, it is alleged, driving the severely damaged car into the Police Barracks. “From what I could see when I was chasing the car, it was a woman,” said the eyewitness who gave chase. “I could see a ponytail. I thought it was really bad to just send that woman flying in the air like that and drive off from the scene. That woman flew in the air and landed all the way by where we were. The driver left her to die in the road like a dog.
So I went in my truck and drove after the car.” The witness, afraid to reveal his ID, said he is almost 100 percent certain the car turned into the police barracks. “When the police stopped me, I was trying to tell them to go after the car. I was not the one they needed to stop, it was the other car. I gave them the licence plate and told them that the windshield and the fender of the car was mashed up.” What occurred next was a nightmare for Luann’s family and her fiancé. Luann’s injuries from the hit and run included severe injuries to her brain (she had a large gash in the back of her head), a broken neck and spine and a punctured heart. With all of those injuries she struggled to stay alive for two days. Her eyes flickered constantly, but finally on November 15, she quietly succumbed to her injuries in her hospital bed. Her death certificate simply reads: “Diffuse vascular injury to the brain, blunt force trauma in the head, pedestrian struck by motor vehicle.” Born on February 17, 1982, Luann would have celebrated her 38th birthday this year had she not been mowed down on that fateful night. “It’s been a long time and we need answers,” said Luann’s fiancé, Jonathan Marshall. “I live in Tampa and I just feel so helpless. We have gotten very little cooperation from the police. We kept calling and calling and we have gotten nothing to go on. “We asked about all the CCTV cameras on West Bay Street in the area of the accident and on Bay Street where the car drove and the answer we got was ridiculous. What are all those cameras for if the police can’t retrieve footage from them to solve crimes?” Marshall came to Nassau
LUANN Joaquim was on her way home when she was hit by a tan-coloured Nissan Elgrand, sending her spinning into the air. In an ensuing car chase, there were many CCTV cameras, inset, on the route.
upon receiving news of the accident from Luann’s family. He eventually returned to Florida when everything seemed to hit a dead end. Luann’s brother, Calanda Cartwright, continued the search for answers to his sister’s death. “When this incident happened, the family and my
sister’s fiancé counted at least 10 CCTV cameras and building cameras where the Elgrand would have travelled,” said Cartwright remembering his sister’s tragic death. “I pointed out this to the police, the officer – Cash was his name – and I had to call him back to see if he
had looked at the footage as we got no call. When I called him back he told me that the police force did not have the manpower or funds to have someone sit and go through the footage to see who killed my sister. This response caught me off guard completely. I could not believe that was said to
me. That was the dead end we came to.” Fiancé Marshall, after months of getting no satisfaction from police on Luann’s death turned to The Tribune. “I should have come to the press earlier,” Marshall said. “We are going this way now because we don’t want to give up. We want answers on Luann’s death. No one should have the right to just kill someone and drive off. How can you just say you have no resources to view footage?” The evident agony and frustration that this fiancé and family are currently experiencing all rests upon answers from the police in bringing the hit-andrun driver to justice. The Tribune spoke with the Commissioner of Police who promised to do his best to assist. “I am not aware of this at all, but I will definitely look into it,” the Commissioner said. “I will have a look at it and see how best I can assist. I am not familiar with the case so I will call for the file and review it and ensure that the officers conduct the necessary investigation. After I have spoken to them, the officers will be in contact with the family.” Marshall and Luann’s family erected a small memorial of a wreath and a heart on the site where she landed after being hit on the night of November 13, 2019. Today the memorial has vanished. Editorial View - Page 6
INSIGHT
EMAIL: insight@tribunemedia.net
MONDAY, APRIL 27, 2020 PAGE 9
We must do everything we can for ALL of those on the frontline in The Tribune Weekend this battle A1MAIN
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A COMIC’S VIEW: I’D CALL THAT PREFERENTIAL, MARVIN
Pages 8 - 9
Goddess reborn
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spread of the virus, we won’t be engaging in this battle strategically. Simply put, we need to become a lot more aggressive to get further in front of this. Otherwise, our healthcare workers will continue to become either • All hospital visits are now cancelled infected or quarantined. Another issue as health- • Officials want to care workers continue to be extend curfew 15 medical staff exposed is what defines a •are confirmed cases “frontline worker”. As we • Sandilands move understand it, a frontline exposed spread risk health worker has historically been considered to be those who provide care directly to their communities. However, possible division on this issue seems HOW The Tribune reported CHURCHES FORin SERVICES TOlast RESUME on thePRESS medics quarantine week inevitable as the government’s commitment to provide physicians with a Such fine print has been workers is a slap in the face $5,000 honorarium and a unsettling, especially for to every doctor stepping provision of a life insur- junior doctors who com- into the belly of the beast to ance benefit of $100,000 in prise the majorityNYGARD of theINSISTS: treatI’M our THEcitizens. VICTIM the event of an untimely PMH workforce. For docMoreover, with grumdeath only applies to some tors that work in the same blings of possible pay cuts frontline workers – those hospital, all encounter- in the sector, there should DIANE PHILLIPS on the “frontline of the ing a high degree of risk be cause for great WE’RE DISCOVERING conWE REALLY CAN DO health sector’s response” as and exposure to the virus, cern. The last thing the THINGS OURSELVES indicated by the Ministry for only some of them to government should be conof Health. be considered frontline sidering is cutting the salary pages 16 - 17
TWO PATIENTS DIE: 200 MEDICS QUARANTINED THE WORKERS in Super Value were showing people how to stay safe yesterday. Photo: Terrel W Carey Sr/Tribune
By RASHAD ROLLE Tribune Senior Reporter rrolle@tribunemedia.net
THE Bahamas reported two more COVID19 deaths yesterday as health officials revealed they have recommended to Prime Minister Dr Hubert Minnis that his drastic curfews extend into May and there be no further relaxation of the lockdown measures. Health Minister Dr Duane Sands also revealed that more than 200 healthcare workers are in quarantine after exposure to a patient on Princess Margaret Hospital’s medical surgical ward over the weekend, though he expects that number to dramatically decrease after officials perform risk assessments. He said 15 healthcare
workers have been confirmed COVID-19 cases to date and in the next few days, officials expect to complete testing of all exposed healthcare workers. Among the healthcare workers in quarantine are 96 doctors and 62 nurses, he said. COVID-19 had a mortality rate of about 15 percent in the country up to press time, with 11 confirmed deaths and 72 confirmed cases. Two New Providence men ages 53 and 51 are the latest COVID-19 deaths. They had no history of travel. The two new confirmed cases include New Providence women, ages 53 and 29, who are in home isolation. Fourteen people have SEE PAGE THREE
By TANYA SMITH-CARTWRIGHT ts-cartwright @tribunemedia.net
BAHAMAS Christian Council wants churches to reopen next month under strict guidelines to keep congregants safe from contracting the deadly coronavirus. “We have a letter
we would have written to the Prime Minister about our phased approach to opening and so we just await the date,” said Bishop Delton Fernander, president, Bahamas Christian Council. “It’s a letter on what we would do in terms of seating, sanitising stations, no gathering, or welcoming
By TRIBUNE REPORTER
CANADIAN fashion tycoon Peter Nygard has issued a strong denial to the latest rape allegations laid against him in a New York court. The Tribune reported this week Nygard now faces 36 additional allegations of sexually assaulting women in addition to ten accusations made by other purported victims. The latest raft of
ACCUSED: Peter Nygard
accusers - as before include underage girls from The Bahamas invited to
or touching. Once we get a start date, we will then start our denominational training for churches.” Bishop Fernander said the letter was sent to the Prime Minister on Monday, but the Council has not yet received a reply. “We know he is considering opening the churches and when he
decides on the date he is planning opening then he will communicate that to us. All that is depending on the numbers (of COVID-19 cases) and how the country is going. We need to determine if it’s community spread or it’s institutionally spread. SEE PAGE THREE
Nygard’s infamous pyjama parties at his Lyford Cay home. In a statement after the latest claims were filed in a New York court a spokesman for Nygard repeated the tycoon’s denials and insisted he was the victim of a conspiracy engineered by his Lyford Cay neighbour, Louis Bacon. His spokesman said:” (The) filing in the Jane Doe case marks SEE PAGE SEVEN
SEE PAGE EIGHT
of junior physicians who are the driving force behind healthcare at PMH. They are already no strangers to low morale because of a lack of appreciation. No doubt, the money needs to come from somewhere to buy testing kits, PPE and to address the looming disaster of mass unemployment. However, the healthcare sector needs to remain untouched. Before that, we need to see Parliamentarians giving up their salaries and the business community emerging to the fore to donate badly needed resources – some have already stepped up to the plate. Make no mistake, we’re asking a lot of our healthcare workers. And as this continues, if it’s any way we can repay them, it is by adhering to the guidelines given by our medical experts and advocating for our healthcare professionals as we continue to go toe-to-toe with this pandemic.
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IF YOU heard last week’s announcement of 200 healthcare workers from Princess Margaret Hospital and Sandilands Rehabilitation Centre being placed in quarantine and the hairs on the back of your neck did not stand up, you aren’t considering the long-term sustainability of the healthcare system. Particularly in Princess Margaret Hospital, resource shortages are constant. When tested by COVID-19, one can only imagine the dangers that result in 200 healthcare workers being taken offline. Though mitigation measures to keep Bahamians at home have been the thrust of this government, without ramping up capacity to test as many Bahamians as possible we are going to run into some serious issues. Coupled with the global issue of enough personal protection equipment (PPE) to go around, keeping healthcare workers safe increasingly becomes a challenge. The instance with the patient infected with COVID-19 that led to the healthcare worker quarantine is just the tip of the iceberg. While we hope there would be a zero to minimal amount of transfer that took place, we must acknowledge two things.
First, an excellent step by the government was made to test all of these individuals who would came into contact with the ward in question. Second, we too must acknowledge that the lack of proactive widespread testing has us constantly behind the eight ball. Imagine this. Let’s consider there is anywhere between 1,000 and 1,500 doctors, nurses and auxiliary nurses at Princess Margaret Hospital. Then consider how this one scenario of a patient found out after the fact to be positive for COVID-19 led to the quarantine of 96 doctors and 62 nurses – approximately 10–15 percent of the system. With a quarantine period of 14 days - with some possibly in a shorter period of time – the situation doesn’t need to be repeated many times to decimate the workforce. Though doctors from the private sector have been engaged to lend support, unless we alter how we’re fighting this disease to increase safety for doctors on the frontline, we’re really only doing this with a hope and a prayer. Minister of Health Duane Sands said last week that of the 72 cases at the time this column was written, 15 are healthcare professionals. Without exponentially more testing to bring mitigation up to pace with the
e
BY MALCOLM STRACHAN
HOME CHEFS
WHATSAPP: +81-70-4374-2547 (Inna) / +81-80-2081-0760 (Juan) Local Contact: 603-2277/ 424-4216
Montrose Ave.& Hampton St. Nassau
THE PRINCESS Margaret Hospital
PAGE 10 MONDAY, APRIL 27, 2020
INSIGHT
EMAIL: insight@tribunemedia.net
ONE of the key lessons is that our own life depends on the behaviour of others and that human beings are integrally interdependent on one another
The world must understand we are all in this fight By MARIA FERNANDA ESPINOSA Former President of the United Nations General Assembly and a former Foreign & Defence Minister of Ecuador ON April 24 last year representatives from across the world celebrated the International Day of Multilateralism and Diplomacy for Peace for the first time. The occasion took place in the emblematic hall of the United Nations General Assembly in New York and came as a direct result of a Resolution approved by the 193 UN member states. At that time, we could not possibly have imagined the scenario that is now being played out across the world and how all our lives have been impacted. In common with hundreds of thousands of people across the globe, I have also personally experienced the terrible effects of the virus. The COVID-19 pandemic has forever changed humanity. It has changed the way we communicate, interact, make decisions and think about the future. Nothing will be the same again. An alarm has awakened in us all. It already has raised huge questions and should be providing global leaders with many lessons, the first being that acting alone, or unilaterally, is ultimately self defeating. One of the key lessons is that our own life depends on the behaviour of others and that human beings are integrally interdependent on one another. Each of us is fragile and vulnerable. This is a lesson to our arrogance as a species. We need to understand that inequalities and poverty are determining factors of vulnerability and access to medical care and public services. Here, the role of the State is irreplaceable to guarantee the most basic rights, such as the right to life. Further the State has to recognize that strong and effective public health systems are the best social investment any society can have, and act to establish them. No one should forget, or ignore, that women represent more than 70 percent of the global health workforce and are essential in the COVID-19 response. There is another stark truth; women and girls across the world are
experiencing higher levels of domestic violence as a result of the pandemic. Central to our global and individual response is the understanding that despite the efforts of each country and the decisions it makes, the only effective way to combat the COVID19 pandemic is through coordinated global action, based on solidarity and cooperation. And that, despite the resurgence of nationalism and xenophobia, this virus does not recognize borders or nationalities. That is why we require a strong, effective multilateral system that is fit to deal with the multiple and devastating effects of the pandemic. Ultimately, global leadership, collective action and co-responsibility that define multilateralism, are the most effective antidote for COVID-19. Humanity needs a multilateral system that responds to this public health emergency simultaneously and at two levels. First, an immediate humanitarian response, especially for the most vulnerable, such as older adults, people with disabilities or refugees. And, second, a strategy, a coordinated action that targets the devastating economic and social consequences of the crisis. It is time to establish a new social pact, a new common sense, that offers solutions to the massive loss of jobs, the destruction of the livelihoods of informal workers, the multiplication of hunger and the deepening of inequalities. There are dozens of initiatives, ideas and plans, ranging from debt cancellation to the creation of emergency funds – now is surely the time to bring them together and act on them. Governments everywhere must take seriously the call of the UN Secretary General, António Guterres, for a global ceasefire, so that nations can direct their resources and efforts to confront the crisis that is the one genuine battle that humanity should now be waging. The global community must take seriously the recent call of the UN General Assembly for “a global response based on unity, solidarity and renewed multilateral cooperation”, and the Resolution approved last week, on the initiative of Mexico,
advocating the need for all countries, especially the poorest to have access to tests, equipment and medicines, and hopefully soon to treatments and vaccines. The creation by the United Nations of the Global Humanitarian Response Plan and the establishment of the Recovery Fund for poor and middle-income countries must be recognized and supported. The latter include almost all the countries of Latin America and the Caribbean. However, for these initiatives to work, hundreds of billions of dollars are required, alongside the committed participation and contribution of the richest nations. As can clearly be seen now, wealthy nations are not immune from the spread of disease, and in treating with it within their own borders, they must recognize that they remain vulnerable to its effects from the global neighbourhood. Trying to put out the fire in their own yard will not stop the blowing embers from the conflagration around them to reignite the fire again and again. It is the totality of the fire that has to be extinguished, not only its sparks. Amid this crisis, governments and civil society have the opportunity to re-found, rethink and transform the nature and scope of global integration. It is time for a new social pact that must be built on the foundation of multilateralism and from its main pillar, which is the United Nations. In this pandemic and in other global challenges such as climate change, poverty and hunger, inequalities or war, there is no room for the law of the fittest. For everyone is losing, and everyone is counting their grave losses in precious human lives and severe erosion of decades of economic gains. The word ‘multilateralism’ is perhaps difficult for some governments to celebrate as the greatest contributor to human progress. But it is essential as it is irreplaceable. Synonyms can be used to disguise multilateralism. It can be described, for political convenience, as solidarity, cooperation, coordination, or global governance. None of that diminishes the reality that multilateralism is certainly more necessary now than ever.
EMAIL: insight@tribunemedia.net BY DR STEPHANIE P HUTCHESON SURVEYS conducted in the British public in recent months confirmed the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on mental health will be staggering. The public is anxious and fearful. This article addresses some common questions the public may have in how to cope with the uncertainties and restrictions associated with the pandemic.
INSIGHT
Q&A: Coping during the COVID-19 crisis THE PANDEMIC has seen long lines of shoppers at food stores. Photo: Shawn Hanna/Tribune Staff
How can we deal with fear of contracting the virus? It would not be wise to pretend we cannot contract the virus because its very nature makes it so easily transmissible. We are in a pandemic that is killing people through a virus that has traversed the globe on its human carriers. It’s been sudden. It’s been our status in The Bahamas since mid-March. One way to cope is to acknowledge our emotions as normal. We can also adhere to the steps given by health care professionals to decrease the risk of contracting the virus. We can also remind ourselves that even though we’re bombarded by statistics about deaths worldwide there are also many who have recovered. That message gets lost. We have to have a balanced view of what is happening. How can I keep my children grounded with so much fear and death around us? This is the time more than ever where your actions will speak louder than your words. If your children have a sense of safety and stability through watching you they will fare better. You can normalise their experience by letting them know this is a unique event in our lifetime – a global pandemic. Let them know that it’s normal to feel anxious and confused and yes bored! You can acknowledge that even as a parent you have those feelings.
MONDAY, APRIL 27, 2020 PAGE 11
cognitions drive our emotions and behaviour. We compound the situation when we spread our fears in our discussions with others so that there’s this contagion of fear and not just of the virus. The short answer: Stop and think about what you’re doing and why. What do I do if a loved one gets the virus?
However, if you are overly anxious and afraid they will feel that, see that, absorb it and respond similarly. Give them time to talk with you about what they may be thinking and feeling. You may accomplish this by having your own family updates time e.g. at dinner. If you watch the daily press conference invite them to join you. But also limit their exposure as far as you are able because a steady diet of the negative is overwhelming. Also, make room for enjoyable activities. How can we respond to job loss, layoffs and financial upheaval? This is not an easy fix. Loss of employment and income are tangible stressors because our basic survival needs are
threatened: food, clothing, shelter, and care of our families. Dealing with this is not just psychological issue. This calls for a multi-faceted approach anchored in community: mental health support, spiritual encouragement financial counseling and economic interventions etc. Residents can utilize the assistance provided by local and regional health organizations and the psychology community published support phone lines and services. In faith communities virtual services by online platform foster hope, resilience and practical support. Governmental short-term funding is in place to mitigate the immediate impact while long-range interventions are a work in progress. Don’t give up.
What are ways to cope with loneliness amid lockdowns and curfews?
stretch ourselves to reach out and ask for what we need from others.
Psychological research confirms people can respond negatively to quarantines and curfews. People feel lonely in this context because we want connection. That’s normal. Even those who self-identify as introvert and have higher thresholds for alone-time need community. One way to deal with the loneliness is to acknowledge the emotion so that it’s not formless and vague. Another way is to reach out to others proactively. Make the call. We have technology that allows for connection even while we practice physical distancing. I keep seeing the phrase, “we’re all in this together.” So let’s extend ourselves to others and
What about panic buying? We have seen this scenario played out on social media and news broadcasts globally. It’s a human response driven by fear grounded in the perception of a threat to survival and those things we need to survive – yes, even the toilet paper. The delicate balancing act is one of purchasing what we need, believing the government and food distributors that there is enough for all for the foreseeable future. Then we have to resist the fearful cognitions that drive us to buy and hoard. We have to pay attention to what we’re thinking because our
The isolating nature of this virus adds another layer to the stressor of this disease. The key features of support and contact are restricted for the good of the patient and the family. This is difficult because it flies in the face of what we know to do intuitively. It would be good if there is a designated point person to keep the family current with updates, and to liaise with the treatment team. Selfcare is important: adequate sleep, rest, regular meals, exercise in the house or yard or neighbourhood, keeping a diary, positive activities are also helpful strategies. What can we learn from the COVID experience? This season will end. If we take stock of how the world rebounded after the 1918 flu pandemic, there is a precedent that we will also rebound even though life as we knew it preCorona might be different. We have the opportunity to reinvent ourselves and our priorities and our communities for the better. Dr. Hutcheson is a Clinical Psychologist and Assistant Professor of Psychology at the University of The Bahamas; Email stephanie.hutcheson@ub.edu.bs
PAGE 12, Monday, April 27, 2020
THE TRIBUNE
JOHNSON RETURNS TO FACE GROWING DIVISIONS IN BRITAIN LONDON Associated Press
BRITISH Prime Minister Boris Johnson has returned to work after recovering from a coronavirus infection that put him in intensive care, with his government facing growing criticism over the deaths and disruption the virus has caused. Johnson’s office said he would be back at his desk in 10 Downing St tomorrow, two weeks after he was released from a London hospital. Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab, who has been standing in for the prime minister, said Sunday
that Johnson — the only world leader to be diagnosed with the coronavirus — was “raring to go”. Britain has recorded 20,732 deaths among people hospitalized with COVID-19, the fifth country in the world to surpass 20,000 deaths. Thousands more are thought to have died in nursing homes. Johnson, 55, spent a week at St Thomas’ Hospital, including three nights in intensive care, where he was given oxygen and watched around the clock by medical workers. After he was released on April 12, he recorded a video message thanking staff at the hospital for saving his life.
Johnson hasn’t been seen in public since, as he recovered at Chequers, the prime minister’s country retreat outside London. While he convalesced, Britain’s coronavirus death toll has mounted, with another 413 virus-related deaths announced yesterday. Opposition politicians say Britain’s death toll could have been lower if Johnson’s Conservative government had imposed a nationwide lockdown sooner. But they are also demanding to know when and how the government will ease the restrictions that were imposed March 23 and run to at least May 7.
Some people and businesses are growing impatient with the restrictions, which have brought much of the economy and daily life to a halt. Road traffic has begun to creep up after plummeting when the lockdown first was imposed, and some businesses have begun to reopen after implementing social-distancing measures. “Decisions need to be taken quicker and communication with the public needs to be clearer,” opposition Labour Party leader Keir Starmer said in a letter to Johnson. “The British public have made great sacrifices to make the lockdown work,” he wrote. “They
deserve to be part of an adult conversation about what comes next.” But Johnson’s government, facing criticism for being too slow to impose the lockdown, appears in no hurry to end it. Raab said there would be no dramatic sudden change to the restrictions. “We won’t just have this binary easing up of measures. We will end up moving to a new normal,” he told the BBC. “We need to take a sure-footed step forward which protects life but also preserves our way of life. So we are very focused on doing the homework that can allow us to do that.”
LAS VEGAS STRUGGLES TO SURVIVE SHUTDOWN LAS VEGAS Associated Press
LEFT: Disinfecting a containment zone during lockdown in Hyderabad, India; above: Women queue to buy bread in Dakar, Senegal; right: A salesman working on a street corner in Manhattan, New York.
Trump to pivot from virus to the economy WASHINGTON Associated Press AFTER two months of frantic response to the coronavirus, the White House is planning to shift President Donald Trump’s public focus to the burgeoning efforts aimed at easing the economic devastation caused by the pandemic. Days after he publicly mused that scientists should explore the injection of toxic disinfectants as a potential virus cure, Trump has now rejected the utility of his daily task force briefings, where he has time and again clashed with scientific experts. Trump’s aides are aiming to move the president onto more familiar — and safer, they hope — ground: talking up the economy, in tighter controlled settings. It’s a political imperative as allies have seen an erosion in support for the president. What had been his greatest asset in the reelection campaign, his ability to blanket news headlines with freewheeling performances, has become a daily liability. At the same time, new Republican Party polling shows Trump’s path to a second term depends on the public’s perception of how quickly the
economic rebounds from the stateby-state shutdowns meant to slow the spread of the virus. Some states have started to ease closure orders, and Trump is expected to begin to highlight his administration’s work in helping businesses and employees. Aides said the president would hold more frequent roundtables with CEOs, business owners and beneficiaries of the trillions of dollars in federal aid already approved by Congress, and begin to outline what he hopes to see in a future recovery package. Trump last left the White House grounds a month ago, and plans are being drawn up for a limited schedule of travel within the next few weeks, aide said. It would be a symbolic show that the nation is beginning to reopen. The shift comes in conjunction with what the White House sees as encouraging signs across the country, with the pace of new infections stabilizing and deaths declining. Still, medical experts warn that the virus will remain until at least a vaccine is developed and that the risk of a severe second wave is high if social distancing is relaxed too quickly or if testing and contact
tracing schemes aren’t developed before people return to normal behaviours. The White House is deliberating whether to continue to hold news briefings in a modified form without Trump, potentially at a different location. Before Trump said in a tweet on Saturday that they were “Not worth the time & effort,” aides had been eager to use the briefings to highlight positive trends and to overwhelm Americans with statistics. It was an effort to restore confidence in the response so that the public would be comfortable resuming more normal activities. “We know that’s important,” Dr. Deborah Birx, the White House coronavirus task force coordinator, told Fox News Channel’s “Sunday Morning Futures.” “We understand those messages of science and policy need to be brought forward to the American people in a nonpolitical way.” Few Americans regularly look to or trust Trump as a source of information on the pandemic, according to a survey from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research released last week.
On Monday, the White House was expected to release a recap of what the federal government has done so far to improve the availability of COVID-19 testing, personal protective equipment and ventilators. Still, governors in both parties say much more is needed, particularly in testing, in the coming months, as they deliberate how and when to reopen their states. “I want to get our economy back opened just as soon as we can, but I want to do so in a safe way so we don’t have a spike, we don’t cause more deaths, or an overloading of our health care system,” Gov. Larry Hogan told ABC’s “This Week.” Birx expressed frustration that Trump’s injection comments were still in the headlines, illustrating the tensions that have emerged between the president and his medical advisers. “As a scientist and a public health official and a researcher, sometimes, I worry that we don’t get the information to the American people that they need, when we continue to bring up something that was from Thursday night,” she said on CNN’s “State of the Union.”
PRISONERS BEING KEPT IN CLOSE CONFINEMENT
IN this photo released by El Salvador Presidency Press Office police guard inmates during a security operation after President Nayib Bukele decreed maximum emergency in prisons housing gang members at the Izalco prison in San Salvador, El Salvador. Bukele ordered the emergency the day after more than 20 people were killed throughout country that authorities said were ordered from prisons.
SLOT machines are powered down, casinos boarded up and barricaded. Sidewalks are largely deserted and electronic marquees that once flashed neon calls for nightclubs, magic shows and topless revues instead beam somber messages of safety. The famous fountains of the Bellagio casino, where water choreographed to lights and music shoots hundreds of feet in the air, are still. Throngs of visitors who made it tough to maneuver on sidewalks have been replaced by the occasional jogger or skateboarder. On the always busy, always noisy, never sleeping Las Vegas strip, you can now hear birds chirping. “It’s crazy,” said Chris Morehouse, a 70-year-old Elvis impersonator who spent a recent afternoon sipping Miller High Life and posing with a few locals who took advantage of the eerie silence to take photos at the neon-bedecked welcome sign on the Las Vegas Strip. “It’s like the end of the world.” Instead of hosting throngs of visitors for one of the busiest seasons of the year, with March Madness drawing swarms to sportsbooks, or the now-scuttled plan to host the NFL draft this weekend, ferrying players in boats to a red carpet stage on the Bellagio lake, Las Vegas is trying to survive. Nevada’s tourism, leisure, hospitality and gambling industry accounts for one in three jobs in the state - making the state more dependent on tourism than Alaska on oil. Workers are expected to lose $7.7 billion in wages and salaries over the next 18 months if the tourism industry is shuttered between 30 and 90 days, according to a study from the Nevada Resort Association. With the industry effectively closed for more than five weeks now, more than 343,000 residents have filed for unemployment, and state and local governments could lose more than $1 billion in tax revenues. The politically independent mayor of Las Vegas, Carolyn Goodman, has issued public pleas calling for the Democratic Gov. Steve Sisolak to end the statewide shutdown of casinos and non-essential businesses, which she calls “total insanity.” “For heaven’s sake,” Goodman said at an April city council meeting, “being closed is killing us already, and killing Las Vegas, our industry, our convention and tourism business that we have all worked so hard to build.” Sisolak has declined to give a date for when he’ll start easing restrictions, saying the state has to see at least two weeks of declines in deaths and new cases, along with more widespread testing and tracking, with before he will start gradually easing rules. He said he didn’t want workers to have to choose between their paycheck and their life and noted that the casino workers’ union has reported 11 deaths among its ranks due to the virus.
SPORTS SECTION E
PAGE 16
MONDAY, APRIL 27, 2020
Exuma regatta cancelled for first time in 67 years By BRENT STUBBS Senior Sports Reporter bstubbs@tribunemedia.net THIS weekend would have been the hosting of the prestigious National Family Island Regatta for sloop sailing boats in picturesque Elizabeth Harbour in George Town, Exuma. But with the Bahamas government shutting down the country and its borders, particularly with inter-island travel, the national committee was forced to cancel the event for the first time in its 67 years of existence. Danny Strachan, who has served as the commodore for the regatta for almost 30 years, said
it certainly wasn’t business as usual for the traditional gathering together of thousands of persons in Exuma for onshore and boating activities in the crystal clear blue waters in George Town. “It was probably the most solemn week on the regatta calendar,” Strachan said. I don’t want to compare it to the solemn Easter holiday weekend, but that was exactly what it was. People were so disappointed. Many people had regatta syndrome, not just in our country, but also from around the world. They wanted to know why we didn’t just postpone it rather than cancel it and come back once the virus had passed and hosted it then.”
But Strachan said the planning and the logistics of putting on the event for a later date in the year would not have been feasible. So they have decided to cancel it for the first time and work towards preparing for next year. “A lot of people were disappointed, including the 30-plus vendors who were looking forward to making some money to take care of their personal expenses and taking care of mortgages and school fees,” he said. “It had a tremendous economic impact on the island of Exuma.” With more than 70 boats participating in the various classes of competition, Strachan said their committee had projected
spending around $400,000 to host the regatta. “I suspected that if the regatta was on, we would have had close to 80 boats because here in George Town, Buzzy Rolle had built three new boats for the E class, Andros had built three and there was also a new boat coming out of Black Point, Exuma.” However, because of the tremendous influx of people to the island, Strachan said they could have easily raised more than $2 million for the various aspects in the community, including the air, sea and ground transportation, hotel accommodation and food. “While he served as the commodore, Strachan said there were
a number of persons who worked with him behind the scenes, as well as in the Ministry of Agriculture & Marine Resources, headed by Michael Pintard, along with the skippers and sailors, who all push to make the event a success. “Collectively, we met and discussed in the national fight against the Covid-19, we decided to cancel this year’s event,” Strachan said. “Minister Pintard also supports our resolve to host this wonderful national event in April 2021, when, with God’s grace, we will have all begun the process of restoring our communities to our usual conviviality.”
SEE PAGE 14
Bahamian connection at University of Kentucky By BRENT STUBBS Senior Sports Reporter bstubbs@tribunemedia.net ike an aeroplane taxied on the runway for takeoff, coach Rolando ‘Lonnie’ Greene said he can’t wait for the University of Kentucky to get their new school year started with sprinter Jaide Knowles joining her fellow St Augustine’s College alumni quarter-miler Megan Moss. Knowles, in making her collegiate debut, will follow on the heels of the successful debut of Moss’ shortened freshman season this year as the duo will form a Bahamian connection on the Wildcats’ track and field team in Lexington, Kentucky, where Greene will once again be joined on his coaching staff by “Golden Girl” Debbie Ferguson-McKenzie. “With what she’s bringing to college, I think she will be successful in whatever she decides to do. She’s a genius academically,” Greene said. “So I’m so excited for her and I’m looking forward to have her making the same kind of contribution to our athletic programme as Megan did this year. “Anytime you get great scholars with athletic abilities in your programme, you are doing it the right way. That’s the whole key to what we do. You are developing scholars and you are teaching them discipline through athletics so that they can go into the world and in their community and be a pillar or a leader to make a difference in the lives of those persons they come in contact with.” With the world at a standstill because of the spread of the coronavirus pandemic, Greene said they are only waiting on Moss had, albeit, the outdoor season got disrupted when the NCAA shut down all of its competitions because of the spread of the virus. “If she had any type of year like Megan had, we will be very, very pleased,” Greene said. “I think the Bahamas, as a nation, will have another option for relay legs, long or short. In my research on Jaide, she can run from the 100 metres to the quarter (400), so it gives the Olympic team another option for another relay to advance at the Olympic Games next year or the World Championships the following year. “In my humble opinion, and I go back to Megan, I really believe maybe I need to drink more Mountain
L
Dew on my perspective on the way how I look at things because I really believed that Megan Moss was going to shock people on the track this year. If she didn’t run 50 seconds, she would have been very close this year. I believe, if she was given the opportunity to run at the CARIFTA Games, the record would have been broken in the under-20 girls’ division or she would have ran very fast.” As a freshman, Moss had produced the 26th fastest time in the nation in the 400m in 52.58 seconds at the Tiger Paw Invitational on February 14. Fellow Bahamian and another former St Augustine’s College standout Doneisha Anderson, who was in her sophomore year at the University of Florida, had the third fastest time of 52.06 at the same meet. Bailey Lear, a sophomore at the University of South Carolina, had the fastest time by all collegians of 51.60 that she ran at the 2020 MPSF Indoor Track and Field Championships on February 28. At the SEC Championships at the Gilliam Indoor Track Stadium at College Station, Texas, from February 28-29, Moss missed the cut for the final of the 400m when she placed 20th overall in 53.23. Anderson had the second fastest time of 52.53, but was fifth in the final in 52.28. Both Anderson and Moss had qualified for the NCAA Championships at the Albuquerque
TOP - Quarter-miler Megan Moss in training with coach Rolando ‘Lonnie’ Greene. ABOVE - Sprinter Jaide Knowles. Convention Center in Albuquerque, New Mexico over the weekend of March 13-14, but the event was cancelled because of Covid-19, as was the reminder of the collegiate season, including the outdoor season. Anderson, nor Moss competed in the 200m, but the Bahamas had two other competitors, who performed very well. Devine Parker, formerly at the University of Kentucky but now at Ohio State, posted the 15th best time of 23.24 at the Big Ten Indoor Track and Field Championships and Grand Bahamian Brianne Bethel at the University of Houston had the 39th best time of 23.60 at the Red Raider Invitational on January 24. Parker, in her sophomore year, had also qualified for the NCAA Indoor Championships in the 200m, but Bethel didn’t make it. Greene said with the way these young women performed this year, the future
looks bright for the Bahamian sprint programme and he’s happy that he will get to groom two of them in Moss and Knowles. “I believe that if Jaide comes in and she acclimates and doesn’t get distracted and do what she has to do and stay the course, understanding that she will always have time to enjoy the collegiate season, as Megan has done, I really think the sky is the limit for her,” he said. “I believe the sky is the limit for any young man or woman once they apply themselves with the talent level that both she and Megan possess. So I’m happy to be able to have them both in our programme.” Greene said like everybody in the United States, not just at the collegiate but also the elite level, they are in a holding pattern just waiting to hear the authorities say they have the all-clearance to go. “Everybody is in a holding pattern
just waiting to get back out there,” he pointed out. “I personally can’t wait to see these young people and to just hug them. “It’s really weird, but we love our kids like that. They can come in and talk to us about anything. So I just can’t wait for us to start. It’s a wait and see process, but when we do it will be worth it.” At present in Kentucky, Greene said the state has had its death as a result of the amount of persons affected by the virus, but they are coping with it. “We’re good. I think it’s important for us to do what the local authorities are telling us,” he said. “We have to do the social distancing and to stay inside. You go out when it is necessary. “You can’t just go out because you want to go. This is something that we just don’t know about. But I know the Greene family is staying inside. I don’t have time for that. I might go outside for about 45 minutes to breath and exercise, but for the most part, we are inside.” He said his family had a little scare the other day when one of his sons got a slight burn and they rushed him to the emergency room, but it was the quickest that they ever got served. Greene said they are taking advantage of their confinement at home as they may have watched every series on Netflix as they adhere to their slogan “stay at home and save lives.”
BATTLE 4 ATLANTIS 2021 FIELD REVEALED By RENALDO DORSETT Tribune Sports Reporter rdorsett@tribunemedia.net WHILE the COVID19 pandemic continues to force the rescheduling of sporting events around the world, plans continue for The Bahamas to be a major sports tourism destination and home of Complete Sports Management’s Battle 4 Atlantis. The field for the 2021 edition of the tournament was recently revealed featuring several returning programmes. The UConn Huskies (American Athletic Conference) will make their third tournament appearance while the Syracuse Orange (ACC), Michigan State Spartans (Big 10), and Virginia Commonwealth Rams (A10) will make their second appearance. The remainder of the field includes the Texas Tech Red Raiders (Big 12), Arizona State Sun Devils (PAC 12), Auburn Tigers (SEC) and Loyola-Chicago Ramblers (Missouri Valley Conference) making their B4A debut in the 2021 field. The Orange previously won the tournament in 2015 and went on to advance to the NCAA Final Four that season. Despite the COVID-19 pandemic creating an aura of uncertainty, the B4A brand is set to expand in 2020. The inaugural B4A Women’s Tournament will be hosted November 21-23, 2020 at the Atlantis resort’s Imperial Arena, featuring an eight-team field of elite Division I programmes. The field will include the Marquette Golden Eagles (Big East), Minnesota Golden Gophers (Big 10), Oklahoma Sooners (Big 12), Oregon Ducks (Pac 12), South Carolina Gamecocks (SEC), South Florida Bulls (American Athletic Conference), Syracuse Orangewomen (ACC) and Central Michigan Chippewas (Mid American) The 2020 men’s tournament, presented by Bad Boy Mowers, is set to feature another star-studded field in 2020 with one former tournament champion and one of the most recognised names in NCAA Division I basketball. The Duke Blue Devils (ACC) will headline the field along with the Ohio State Buckeyes (Big 10), Texas A & M Aggies (SEC), West Virginia Mountaineers (Big 12), Utah Utes (PAC 12), Creighton Bluejays (Big East), Wichita State Shockers (AAC) and Marshall (C-USA). Duke won the 2012 Battle 4 Atlantis and will be one of several returning teams along with Texas A & M, Utah and Wichita State. West Virginia, Ohio State and Creighton will make their tournament debut.
PAGE 14, Monday, April 27, 2020
THE TRIBUNE
National Sports Authority will have big role to play in aftermath of COVID-19 By BRENT STUBBS Senior Sports Reporter bstubbs@tribunemedia.net THE National Sports Authority will have a big role to play with the facilities they manage at the Queen Elizabeth Sports Centre with the components of entertainment and sports to ensure that Bahamians get back on their feet in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic. NSA chairman Burton Rodgers said it will be a hard task because all of their facilities are officially shut down, but his board and the NSA’s management and staff are working on ways in which they can deal with the global perspective in the coming months. “Before 9-11, we had no issues going to the airport, but now we have to almost get naked before we travel,” he said. “This situation has almost the same effect because social distance is now a term. It’s not just something that we speak about. But we know that entertainment and sports are the largest industries in the world. “We see the effects when we turn on our televisions. There’s no NBA, no NFL, no tennis, no golf. We have to watch so much repeat. So it’s a starvation for what we miss. Entertainment is the same as sport because we don’t get as much of it now because we are so focused on what is going on with COVID-19.” During a board meeting between the seven members, Rodgers said they looked at a number of initiatives that they hope to have implemented after they engaged in conversations with Major League Baseball (MLB), the National Football League (NFL), the National Basketball Association (NBA),
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Carnival executives, ESPN and the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). Joining Rodgers on the board are NSA general manager Quinton Brennen, Ministry of Sports’ Director Timothy Munnings, Bahamas Olympic Committee representative Wellington Miller, Gravette Brown, Telford Munnings and Gregory Bonimy and consultant Ulrick ‘Rick’ Fox. Fox played in the NBA with the Boston Celtics before he went to the Los Angeles Lakers and captured three consecutive titles and is now in a budding acting career. Rodgers said he’s confident that the board assembled will be able to get the job done. “One of the things we will have to do is temperature check on the forehead of persons when they enter the facilities,” he said. “The issue is I don’t want to have an enjoyment with the possibility of dying. So how do we, from a mental aspect, get people to do these things? “In order to do that, we will have to put some stringent methods in place in conjunction with the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Sports and the NSA. We will try to put things in place that people will feel very comfortable in the very near future to attend the events.” With the country under a 24-hour curfew and weekend lockdowns through the end of the month, Rodgers said there is zero revenue being generated by the NSA at their venues that include the Carnival Site, the Thomas A Robinson National and Track and Field Stadiums, the Kendal GL Isaacs Gymnasium, the Betty Kelly Kenning Swim Complex, the National
Tennis Centre, the Bahamas Hotrod Association facility, the Bahamas Golf Federation’s Driving Range, the Roscoe L Davies Soccer Developmental Centre and the Baillou Hills Sporting Complex which hosts softball and baseball. “We are a venue and we employ a ton of people,” he stated. “When you don’t have any people coming into your venue, you are not taking in any revenue. We haven’t had any major event since the passing of Hurricane Dorian, for the exception of the college bowl game and the local track and field meets. “Right after Dorian, we started to get back to normal, but Social Services had to use Kendal Isaacs Gymnasium as a shelter as a storage facility and also to host the evacuees from Hurricane Dorian in Grand Bahama and Abaco. So the property has been under siege from October until recently.” With this being the first year in office since taking over in September, Rodgers said they are still in contact with a lot of the international partners who wanted
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to bring certain events to the Bahamas and they are hoping that those projects will still become a reality in the future. “Once persons feel like they can attend events and not get sick and that mentality is embedded in them, I think we will get back to some sort of normalcy and hopefully that will happen before the end of the year.” Prior to the Bahamas government shutting down the facilities at the QESC, starting with the cancellation of the national high school track and field championships on day one of the competition last month, Rodgers revealed that the NSA was in the process of sending out tenders for the renovations to the Kendal Isaacs Gymnasium. “As you know, it was used as a shelter for Hurricane Dorian for about 5-6 months, so there’s extensive work that needs to be done,” he said. “We were getting ready to do that, then the coronavirus started to spread. We are looking forward to getting back to normalcy very soon and getting some workers in there to start the
renovations of the Kendal Isaacs Gym.” Rodgers, a prominent businessman, came in to office the week just before Hurricane Dorian and although his contract is basically from year to year, he’s hoping that the Ministry of Youth, Sports and Culture, under whose jurisdiction the NSA falls under, he will get to continue on as there are some things that he wanted to implement before getting sidetracked by the storm and virus. “When you are looking in, you see all these things that you feel could happen, but when you get in and you are looking at things from the inside out, it’s a totally different ball game,” he stressed. “Although it’s an authority, it’s a government-owned facility and fortunately, we had a great working relationship with the ministry. “Unfortunately, we’ve had two major disasters, which honestly, have disrupted everything that has been put on the drawing board and when I say everything, I mean everything. So your grandiose plans that you have been working on last month, this month and going forward with working with Mike Sands and NACAC and Drumeco Archer and the BAAA, I’m hoping those conversations will come back because they were some great conversations.” Additionally, Rodgers said the NSA was in contact with a number of other sporting bodies, including baseball with the completion of the new stadium, whose work was also halted, on putting on a number of events for 2020 and 2021. “But I am a very optimistic person. I love looking at the glass half full than empty and I have a lot of faith,” he said.
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“Because of my faith and my optimism and my glass half full, I believe we have a really good team that once we get back to some sort of normalcy, we will get those facilities up and running. “People just have to believe in it. Once people believe in it and eliminate that fear, we can get it done. But things have to happen in order to eliminate that fear. Right now, everything is shut down. “Everything is closed. We only have on staff a handful of security officers to ensure that the place is not vandalised and we have some landscaping people to maintain the outside property.” To the sporting body in general, Rodgers encouraged them to keep the hope and drive alive. “Use this time to come up with ideas on how we can bring the sporting community back together,” he said. “And that’s just not from a safety issue, but how they will market their association or federation to get maximum exposure and bring persons back to that level of normalcy. “Everything about sports is contact. Everything, even if you are playing tennis or if you are playing golf. There’s levels of contact. So my thing is we have to keep the faith, keep the drive and use this opportunity to come up with ideas for your organisation and the sporting community in general.” He noted that obviously when the coronavirus would have subsided, things will not be the same as they were before the disruption. Once they have come up with their ideas and solutions, Rodgers encouraged the sporting bodies to present them to the NSA and the Ministry of Sports so they can work closely with the execution of their plans.
REGATTA from PAGE 13
The committee apologises to the large number of racing sloop owners who have already spent many weeks and lots of money in getting their beautiful sloops ready for competition. This COVID19 pandemic is simply too dangerous not to be awfully cautious.” With the new date now set for April 20-25, 2021, Strachan said they are grateful to the many sponsors who have already pledged their sponsorship, so they are gearing up for what they promise to be bigger and better than the previous events held in the past. Strachan, who resides in George Town, said the vendors were already stocking up their goods for the regatta, but once the government made the call to close down the country, they heeded the precautions and began embracing for Covid-19. “Our people here are following the rules and doing the social distancing,” he said. “We’ve been dealing with the lock down pretty good. We’re just praying that it doesn’t come here because when we get back to normalcy and people start travelling again, we hope that this is one of the islands that they chose to come to.” The former banker, however, said the rebounding of the Bahamas’ economy will depend largely on what happens in the United States, so the people should listen to the instructions given by Prime Minister Hubert Minnis and the health officials. “The lock down is only for a period,” he stated. “So let’s follow the rules and hope that we come out of this safe. We don’t want to lose anymore of our brothers and sisters to this COVID-19.” Once it’s safe to congregate again, Strachan said the island will be flooded with sailing activities as they ease the pain of those in distress now. He anticipates that the various settlements will certainly look forward to hosting their own homecoming celebrations as usual. “In the meantime, we just want the people to keep hope alive that we will have a bigger and better regatta next year,” he promised. “We want them to know that tomorrow will be better than today.”
THE TRIBUNE
Monday, April 27, 2020, PAGE 15
Minor League Baseball may be latest casualty of COVID-19 fallout NEMBHARD, By RENALDO DORSETT Tribune Sports Reporter rdorsett@tribunemedia.net MINOR League Baseball may be the latest casualty of the COVID-19 fallout as a reported agreement is in place with Major League Baseball to reduce the group of affiliate teams by 40. MiLB currently fields 160 teams across its various leagues, but that number could be reduced to as much as 120 and the remaining teams could face realignment, according to the Washington Post. “We are working towards creative solutions wherein there will be
120 full season teams,” a letter sent from MiLB sent from affiliates published by the post said. “Most [full-season] teams will continue in their same level of play and with long-term affiliations with their current MLB partners,” the letter said. “A few [minor league] teams will be required to move to different levels of play to accommodate the geographical needs of some MLB clubs and to recognise that the most advanced players should be playing in high-quality facilities.”
A total of 17 Bahamians are currently contracted to minor league deals. Prior to the suspension of all baseball activity, many of those players had yet to receive their assignments for the upcoming season. The minor league baseball season was officially suspended last month and the MLB pledged to offer players financial support through May as the COVID-19 pandemic continues. Major League Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred made the official communication Tuesday
and also added that minor leaguers will receive $400 per week through May 31. MLB previously announced financial support through April 8, the day before the minor league season was set to commence. Individual clubs will create their own compensation plan to assist players assigned to the Dominican Summer League. According to the AP, the weekly minimum salaries on full-season minor league teams range from $290 at Class A to $502 at Triple-A over the five-month season, meaning many players are making more during this hiatus than they do during the season.
ITALIAN GOVERNMENT SETS MAY 18 RETURN FOR SOCCER TRAINING By ANDREW DAMPF AP Sports Writer ROME (AP) — Nearly seven weeks after the last game was played, Italy’s top soccer division finally has a target date to resume practice. Premier Giuseppe Conte announced yesterday that professional sports teams can resume training on May 18, while individual sports can resume practice on May 4. The move means that the Serie A league could resume playing games in June — albeit without any fans in the stadiums. Conte said that starting on Monday, Sports Minister Vincenzo Spadafora “will work intensely with … the soccer system, the professional sports in general, to find a road map that we have already partly defined in terms of the resumption of individual training on May 4 and teams on May 18. “Then we’ll evaluate if the conditions will allow the leagues that were suspended to be completed,” Conte added. Serie A has been suspended since March 9, when the government ordered a nationwide lockdown due to the
coronavirus emergency. Italy had the bad luck of being the first Western nation to be slammed by the outbreak, and its official total of 26,600 fatalities lags behind only the US in the global death toll. “Being a big soccer fan like so many Italians, at the start it seemed strange to me that the season could be interrupted and suspended,” Conte said. “But obviously we found ourselves involved in this health, social and economic emergency. And I think everyone, even the most ardent fans, understood that there wasn’t any alternative.” Twelve rounds remain in Serie A, plus four other games that were postponed from the 25th round. Also, the Italian Cup was suspended after the first leg of the semi-finals. Eight-time defending champion Juventus leads Lazio by one point in the Serie A standings. At least 15 Serie A players have tested positive for COVID-19. Most of the infected players have recovered, although Atalanta’s reserve goalkeeper Marco Sportiello was still positive as of Wednesday, according to the ANSA news agency.
A VIEW of the empty stadium during the Serie A soccer match between AC Milan and Genoa at the San Siro stadium, in Milan, Italy, on Sunday, March 8, 2020. While soccer leagues around Europe are still debating whether and when to resume playing, the leader of the continent’s Federation of Sports Medicine Associations is calling for a detailed series of tests to clear athletes for a return to training. Maurizio Casasco, who is also president of the Italian Federation of Sports Medicine, said that guidelines recently published by his domestic federation should be extended for all of Europe -- especially if UEFA intends to resume the Champions League and Europa League anytime soon. (AP Photo/Antonio Calanni) Sports medicine officials Spadafora said. “The FIGC that Italy had seen its have clashed over a pro- (the Italian soccer federa- lowest day-to-day increase posed health protocol for tion) presented a protocol in deaths — 260 — since soccer players — specifi- and the technical-scientific mid-March, during the first cally over the issue where commission said it wasn’t week of lockdown. if a player or team official sufficient yet. It needs more Conte said that all sports tests positive for the virus, analysis and only after that would resume with the how long — if at all — analysis can we say if the maximum precautions. their teammates should be season will resume or not.” “We’re big fans of sports quarantined. Before Conte’s nation- and we want well for all “There needs to be ally televised speech and of our idols,” he said. “We a gradual return and it news conference, health certainly don’t want them requires a rigid protocol,” ministry figures indicated to get sick.”
MANN DECLARE FOR NBA DRAFT
GAINESVILLE, Florida (AP) — Florida guards Andrew Nembhard and Tre Mann have declared for the NBA draft while keeping open the option of returning to school. The Gators made the announcement yesterday, the final day underclassmen had to decide on their futures. Nembhard hired NCAAcertified agent Jaafar Choufani so he can retain his college eligibility and potentially return to school. He also declared for the draft last year and eventually returned to Florida after not getting invited to the NBA scouting combine. The sophomore averaged 11.2 points, 5.6 assists and 3.0 rebounds in 201920. With 173 assists and 80 turnovers, his assist-to-turnover ratio ranked 49th in the country. Mann, a freshman, averaged 5.3 points off the bench. The Gators seem to be equipped to handle both potential departures. They have Ques Glover and former Cleveland State standout Tyree Appleby to play the point next season. Decisions by Nembhard Mann come after two other Florida starters — guard Scottie Lewis and forward Keyontae Johnson — decided to return to school.
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PAGE 16, Monday, April 27, 2020
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Virtual draft weekend: 49ers fill needs, Packers fall short By JOSH DUBOW AP Pro Football Writer THE task for the San Francisco 49ers heading into the draft was straight forward. Find replacements for departed starters DeForest Buckner at defensive tackle and Emmanuel Sanders at receiver and then find a player to step in for longtime left tackle Joe Staley, who informed the NFC champions before the draft that he planned to retire. The Niners filled the first two spots in the first round with defensive tackle Jevon Kinlaw and receiver Brandon Aiyuk and hoped they wouldn’t regret passing on a potential starting tackle like Tristan Wirfs. They couldn’t have scripted it any better when they were able to trade for seven-time Pro Bowl left tackle Trent Williams on Saturday. “It was a good gamble that worked out well,” coach Kyle Shanahan said. While the 49ers were one of the teams that filled their needs on draft weekend, others like Green Bay fell short. The Packers got a firstround quarterback in Jordan Love to sit behind Aaron Rodgers for a couple of years but didn’t get their star quarterback any wideouts in a receiverrich draft. “It’s a little bit the way everything kind of fell early in the draft,” Packers GM Brian Gutekunst said. “It just didn’t work out that we were able to select some of the guys we had rated really highly.” • Here’s a look at how some other teams filled their needs or didn’t on draft weekend:
FILLED NEEDS VIKINGS Minnesota’s needs were clear after trading star receiver Stefon Diggs and losing cornerbacks Xavier Rhodes, Trae Waynes and Mackensie Alexander. They managed to fill them despite trading down a couple of times in the draft and ended up taking 15 players and acquiring two mid-round picks in 2021. The highlights of this class are first-round receiver Justin Jefferson and cornerback Jeff Gladney. They added another promising cornerback in Cameron Dantzler in the third round, a good coverage linebacker in fourth-rounder Troy Dye. Second-round offensive tackle Ezra Cleveland also provides good value and could be a starter by 2021. BRONCOS Quarterback Drew Lock showed promise in a fivegame audition at the end of his rookie season in 2019. Denver GM John Elway gave Lock plenty of help. The draft’s best route runner in Jerry Jeudy fell to the Broncos at No. 15 in the first round and they added Penn State speedster KJ Hamler to team with Courtland Sutton for a powerful receiving trio. Elway also added fleet tight end Albert Okwuegunam on day three. Lock gets some protection with two strong interior blockers in LSU centre Lloyd Cushenberry and Fresno State guard Netane Muti. BUCCANEERS The Bucs are in win-now mode after signing Tom Brady and acquiring Rob Gronkowski. They did a good job of filling their
WIRFS roster with players who can help their soon-to-be 43-year-old quarterback. They got one of the top tackles in round one in Wirfs and a talented slot receiver in fifth-rounder Tyler Johnson. They also added a third-round running back in Ke’Shawn Vaughn to team with Ronald Jones and a ballhawking safety in Antoine Winfield. PANTHERS After signing quarterback Teddy Bridgewater and receiver Robby Anderson in free agency and locking up running back Christian McCaffrey with a long-term extension, new coach Matt Rhule set out to replace nine defensive starters in the draft. Carolina became the first team in the common draft era to use all of their draft picks on defensive players. Stud defensive tackle Derrick Brown highlights the seven-player class that also includes edge rusher Yetur Gross-Matos, and defensive backs Jeremy Chinn, Troy Pride Jr, and former
LOVE West Virginia and XFL safety Kenny Robinson.
UNFILLED NEEDS
PATRIOTS New England couldn’t expect to find Tom Brady’s replacement in the draft but didn’t even take a shot on any of the quarterbacks. They also failed to bolster their weak receiver group, instead adding to their stellar defence with the first three picks before taking two tight ends in round three. RAMS The Rams had one of the league’s worst offensive lines last year and didn’t address that spot until taking Clemson tackle Treymayne Anchrum in the seventh round. They had no first-round pick after trading it for cornerback Jalen Ramsey and used their first selection on running back Cam Akers. This is the second straight year they took a running
back on day two, which isn’t always the best value. CHARGERS Los Angeles’ other team also had problems on the offensive line last year that weren’t addressed in the draft. They took QB Justin Herbert sixth overall and traded back into the first round for LB Kenneth Murray. That left them with no more picks until round four and they didn’t end up with any linemen. DOLPHINS This draft will be a success for Miami if QB Tua Tagovailoa remains healthy and develops into a franchise QB. But it wouldn’t have hurt to get him a starting receiver in a draft filled with prospects. Instead, they spent their next six picks on the offensive line and secondary and didn’t take a receiver until grabbing Navy QB Malcom Perry in the seventh round. That leaves them with DeVante Parker and few other proven options at receiver.
NFL DRAFT AVERAGES RECORD 8.4M VIEWERS ACROSS THREE DAYS (AP) — NFL coaches and general managers were nervous about the unknown factors involved with a virtual draft. But they were overwhelmed with how everything came together over the three days. It also ended up being must-see TV as the first significant live sporting event since the coronavirus pandemic ground everything to a halt. The draft averaged a record 8.4 million viewers over all three days, according to the NFL and Nielsen. The previous high was 6.2 million last year. After early concerns about how the NFL could conduct a virtual draft, everyone appeared to end up having fun with it. Coaches and general managers embraced their children or spouses being on camera and draft picks got to watch from home comfortably instead of waiting in a green room. Even normally stodgy New England coach Bill Belichick got into the spirit of things by giving his dog, an Alaskan Klee Kai named Nike, some television time. Each day attracted record audiences. Thursday’s first round averaged 15.6 million, Friday’s second and third rounds 8.2 million and Saturday’s final four rounds 4.2 million. ESPN and NFL Network had a combined production all three days while ABC had separate telecasts Thursday and Friday before simulcasting the ESPN/NFL Network feed Saturday. ESPN Deportes also had a separate broadcast.