The 2021 Hurricane Season has come to an end and once again, Belize has been spared from any major storms. The prediction was for an above normal season, which the National Met Service says proved to be accurate; thankfully Belize was not affected. Chief Meteorologist Ronald Gordon spoke with News Five’s Duane Moody today about […]
Brian Castillo is on remand at the Belize Central Prison for allegedly killing his common-law wife and her twelve-year-old daughter last weekend in San Ignacio. Following the harrowing incident, Castillo took custody of his seven-year-old son and absconded to Guatemala. He was apprehended by local authorities in Melchor several days later and was handed over […]
Young men living in gang ridden areas of Belize City are often deemed lazy and unmotivated to work. But, many of these young men would argue this is far from the truth. On the contrary, they say the youth in their communities are willing to work, but job opportunities are slow in coming. In addition, […]
And while the Intervention Unit and the City Council are joining forces for the clean-up, more tools are needed on the ground. Jermaine Garnett is making an appeal for donations of items like wheel barrows, rakes and shovels. Jermaine Garnett, St. Martin’s Community “From the outside community, right now we got all the lee […]
And while providing opportunities for manual labor as a means of generating an honest income, the Department of Youth Services says it also cares about the psychosocial well-being of the men. That is why they are planning a retreat in the Mountain Pine Ridge, to facilitate wellness and wilderness trainings for those involved in the […]
Another program is the “Heal up With Roots” Initiative where sixty Belize City residents are being trained to act as mediators in their communities. DYS is utilizing the cure violence model and participants learn basic counseling and intervention skills. It is a long term approach to addressing the issue of gang violence. We spoke to […]
For the fourth time in a month, a drug plane has been discovered soon after it landed in Belize – and for the second time in that period, at least one police officer has been accused of some level of involvement. Today Commissioner of Police, Chester Williams, held a press conference. News Five’s Marion Ali […]
One of those in police custody in relation to Sunday’s drug plane landing is a Corporal who worked under Assistant Commissioner of Police, Marco Vidal. Vidal, as you will remember, had stepped down as Commander of Operations after the November fifth drug plane bust in Bladen, Toledo. At that time, an internal investigation had begun […]
Commissioner of Police, Chester Williams expressed disappointment that Attorney Dickie Bradley is the defense attorney for the men who were charged in the November fifth drug bust, when he said the Belize Police Department had hoped Bradley, who has spoken out against the plane landings, would have opted to prosecute the defendants. Now, Williams says, […]
A Belize City man, Chef Ruben Cano, was murdered over the weekend on Antelope Extension. The assailants targeted Cano and unleashed a number of bullets that caught him to the body on Saturday. He was rushed to the KHMH, but pronounced dead. Cano leaves behind his two children, their mother who is Cano’s ex-wife, and […]
A man was shot and killed in Dangriga on Friday night. He has been identified as Eden Ramos. Reports are that he was in the Backatown Area when he was approached by two men, one of whom shot him to the forehead. Commissioner of Police, Chester Williams spoke briefly on this incident. Chester Williams, […]
First Doctor Lesbia Guerra, then Doctor Deysi Mendez and now C.E.O. Rey Guerrero. The Ministry of Infrastructure Development and Housing announced today that it is parting ways with one of its two C.E.O.s. Guerrero was responsible for the Housing portfolio. A second C.E.O. was appointed to the ministry to undertake the rebuilding and restructuring of […]
For some time now, the positivity rate of COVID-19 has been on a downward trend, registered between five and ten percent. It’s the lowest that the country has seen in a while as Belize appears to be overcoming our third wave. Currently, there are one thousand eighty-two active cases with one hundred and seventy-three new […]
The news spread like wildfire last week that a new variant had been detected in South Africa. Omicron is more transmissible, but so far, cases are milder in terms of symptoms. The concern though is that more people infected could mean more hospitalizations. Omicron has not been detected in the region and the predominant variant […]
There is a proposed reopening of land borders in January. While it is being met with mixed reviews, today we took the opportunity to ask Doctor Melissa Diaz-Musa for her take on the reopening. Here’s what she had to say. Dr. Melissa Diaz-Musa, Deputy Regional Health Manager, Central Health Region “With omicron being detected, […]
The Indian community is reeling from a double shooting which ended in the murder of one of their members around eight-fifteen on Thursday night in Belize City. Fifty-year-old Anil Asnaney and his wife, forty-four-year-old Manisha, had just left a restaurant on the Northside when they became the targets of gunfire. By the time Police arrived, […]
The New River will be receiving some relief from B.S.I.’s sugar mill by way of its newly commissioned cooling tower. The nine million dollar investment seeks to add an additional layer of cooling for the water being reintroduced into the New River after use. Today, reporters were invited to Tower Hill in Orange Walk to […]
But certainly, A.S.R./B.S.I. is not the only stakeholder in the New River. There are other industries situated along the banks that the Department of Environment is working with to mitigate the effects of pollutants. Minister Habet spoke about his administration’s approach to keeping a healthy river. Orlando Habet, Minister of Sustainable Development “What we […]
And while B.S.I. sugar factory is addressing the New River crisis, one community near the factory has complained in the past about air pollution. Back in 2019, the community of Chan Pine Ridge made headlines following reports of ashes emitted from the factory’s boilers were making them sick. We asked the Vice President for International […]
Cabinet has been encouraging Belize Sugar Industries and the Belize Sugar Cane Farmers Association to continue working in partnership while negotiating the terms of its revised commercial agreement. With the crop season tentatively scheduled to begin in a few weeks, but with no commercial agreement yet, can B.S.I. continue to receive sugar cane from B.S.C.F.A. […]
We also asked the Minister of Sustainable Development for an update on the investigation into the 2019 E.C.P. for Stake Bank’s development. And whether the investigation is directly linked to the retirement of Chief Environmental Officer Martin Alegria. Orlando Habet, Minister of Sustainable Development “The Cabinet had requested that the Chief Environmental officer submit […]
A suspected drug plane, smaller than the aircraft that landed on the Southern Highway several weeks ago, arrived in Stann Creek District last night and seemed to have successfully discharged its illicit cargo before being consumed by fire. A team of officers was dispatched to an area near Santa Cruz Village where they came across […]
It happens over and over again: women are killed at the hands of their current or former spouses. But men have been killed too in domestic incidents. And so have children—young ones and teens –caught in the crossfire of parental disputes. Today those tasked with trying to eliminate the deaths, the beatings and even emotional […]
American Thanksgiving usually marks the unofficial start of the tourist high season which runs through January. This year, tourism stakeholders are beginning to see their bookings go up. But protecting that revenue stream means there has to be collaboration to minimize COVID numbers. And that ever sensitive issue that also has a bearing on our […]
Teachers are exempted from the December fifteenth vaccination mandate for public officers imposed by the Government of Belize. While teachers fall under the public sector, they are not classified as public officers. So, come December fifteenth when public officers will be mandated to show proof of vaccination, teachers will be spared. Minister of Education Francis […]
