NICH and B.T.B. Mum on Cave-tubing Fiasco

On Monday, we reported that a late-afternoon meeting between the National Institute of Culture and History, the Belize Tourism Board and representatives of FECTAB ended into the night in a walkout when disgruntled tour operators decided that they had had enough of a seemingly fruitless discussion.  The parties convened at the B.T.B. headquarters to discuss the recent implementation of a safety policy which prohibits anyone under forty-eight inches from cave-tubing at Nohoch Che’en.  FECTAB executives say that they were bluntly informed during the meeting that the contractual arrangement with Dark Night, for use of an adjacent cave system, was not up for discussion.  With that, a number of tour operators excused themselves from the gathering, complaining bitterly that the newly instituted health and safety regulations are impinging on their livelihoods.  News Five has made several attempts over the past two days to get a comment from NICH and B.T.B.  But both have declined.