Construction of Coast Guard F.O.B. to Resume at Hunting Caye

With the interruption of work on the building of a new forward operating base on Hunting Caye, coast guard personnel have had to endure the discomfort of utilizing the existing facility on the island.  As you would recall, work was discontinued at the location by the United States Army Corp of Engineers when a stink was raised about Guatemalan labor being used to construct the F.O.B.  The good news is that work is expected to resume on the naval installation sometime before June.  According to Commander John Borland, engineers from the Ministry of Works have proceeded to draw up a tendering document itemizing the materials and labor required to complete the project.

John Borland

Rear Admiral John Borland, Commander, BNCG

“The officers that are stationed on Hunting Caye are all on active duty status so they continue to perform their operational requirement for providing law enforcement and their military functions.  They continue to operate out of the old facility.  As you rightfully described, the new facility that was being constructed it still hasn’t met any traction since the project was suspended.  But the update on that project is that now finally we have received the new amended, updated plans from the Army Corp of Engineers.  Our Ministry of Works engineers have since then put together a bill of quantities and an estimate for the completion of that project and we expect that that contract should be put to tender or advertised and awarded perhaps by the end of this financial year and work should commence within the beginning or the first quarter of the 2016 financial year.  But for now they continue to operate out of the old facility that was there before the new one began to be constructed. It is not a ideal.  It’s definitely in a state of disrepair and would need to be repaired but at this point we believe there is no point in doing any investment in refurbishing or renovating that facility as we expect construction to commence shortly on the continuation of the new forward operating base that was being constructed.  As military men, trained to operate under all conditions and to execute their duty, we expect that those men are still able to perform without any flaws at all.  They are provided with the kit, the equipment, the food, the operational directives and orders and they are able to execute.  We’ve operated under far less conditions or worse or adverse conditions and have been able to fulfill our duties [with] no problem at all.”