house & HOME MONDAY
The Tribune
CLASSIFIEDS TRADER
Established 1903
Spicy Sausage McMuffin ignites your mornings
HIGH 88ºF LOW 78ºF
CARS! CARS!
Biggest And Best!
L AT E S T
Volume: 122 No. 208, September 22, 2025
N E W S
O N
t r i b u ne 2 4 2 . c o m
THE PEOPLE’S PAPER: PRICE–$1
Public Officers to get pay Rise Increases expected by year’s end retroactive to September 1, 2025 THOUSANDS of public officers will see bigger pay cheques starting in December after the Davis administration completed a long-promised salary review exercise, with increases retroactive to September 1, 2025. The government said the adjustment applies to all non-contractual public servants who were not
covered in earlier rounds of pay raises. Each employee will receive at least two salary increments, with the size of increases varying by category. The statement did not specify how many workers this would apply to - or the total amount of the cost. Officials said the exercise INCREASE - SEE page SEVEN
Junkanoo divided over support for govt bill By LYNAIRE MUNNINGS Tribune Staff Reporter lmunnings@tribunemedia.net SEVERAL major Junkanoo groups have broken ranks with the Junkanoo Corporation of New Providence (JCNP), throwing their support behind the government’s proposed Junkanoo Authority Bill, despite the JCNP’s
opposition. The legislation, which Youth, Sports and Culture Minister Mario Bowleg said will be tabled in October when Parliament resumes, would create a statutory authority to oversee the management, funding and operations of Junkanoo parades across SUPPORT - SEE page three
People watch a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket cross the sky from Cape Eleuthera during an event to mark the first landing of a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket booster on a drone ship off of Eleuthera on February 18, 2025. Photo: Dante Carrer/Tribune Staff
fears over SpaceX targeting 19 further landings infection rise as EIA notes impacts are minimal for Dialysis By NEIL HARTNELL 19 further landings projected permitted, asserted that patients at PMH Tribune Business Editor should the necessary govern- “the environmental impacts nhartnell@tribunemedia.net
Elon Musk’s SpaceX is bidding to resume booster recovery operations in Bahamian waters with up to
ment approvals be obtained. The just-released EIA, which the Davis administration demanded before any further landings in the Exuma Sound are
of the Falcon 9 booster recovery are minimal” due to its design and operational features. FULL story - see business
Child dies after Freeport playground swing set collapses on top of him By DENISE MAYCOCK Tribune Freeport Reporter dmaycock@tribunemedia.net A CHILD who died when a swing set collapsed at a Freeport playground had to be taken to hospital in his mother’s car because of the delay in an ambulance arriving. Doctors at Rand
Memorial Hospital tried to resuscitate six-year-old Vernal “Zion” Williams but were unsuccessful. “The doctor said his heart had stopped, and they were trying to get it back, but they couldn’t. So, yeah, he just gone,” said his mother, Cardia Williams. TRAGEDY - SEE page five
Vernal “Zion” Williams
Nassau & Bahama Islands’ Leading Newspaper
By LEANDRA ROLLE Tribune Chief Reporter lrolle@tribunemedia.net
DIALYSIS patients at Princess Margaret Hospital (PMH) are facing heightened risks of infection, with healthcare workers blaming temporary catheters, staff shortages and inconsistent supplies for the crisis. Their comments came after disabled dialysis patient Marvin Johnson, 62, voiced concern over rising deaths — many he linked to infections — saying the situation has left patients fearful. Public Hospital Authority officials, including Health and Wellness Minister Dr Michael Darville, INFECTIONS - SEE page four