Several clandestine airstrips have been identified for destruction in the Toledo District where an operation led by the Belize Defense Force will continue to see these makeshift runways being destroyed in the days ahead. The coordinated destruction exercise is being carried out by the B.D.F. demolition squad as part of the Ministry of National Security’s […]
There is significant beach erosion near Maya Beach in the Placencia peninsula. In the area, the beach has eroded up to fifteen feet. Residents say that dredging for a marina is a main contributor to the wearing down of the beach. The sand that is dredged is then transported to other locations for landfill, but […]
The war waged by the former LPG importers has moved to another level. Today, Southern Choice Butane (Zeta Gas) announced that it is shutting down operations countrywide. Fifty employees are being affected while two hundred individuals are being indirectly impacted. The company says that as of Monday, May eleventh it closed all its branches to […]
The three former LPG importers, Gas Tomza, Zeta Gas and Belize Western Energy Limited say they have still been unable to get the new price regime for butane from the National Gas Company. Doctor Gilbert Canton of the National Gas Company recently told News Five that there is more than one million gallons of LPG […]
According to Attorney Audrey Matura, while the former importers are unable to receive an answer from the National Gas Company as to the sale price, the Belize Bureau of Standards today sent a letter requesting that the companies cough up their LPG inventory data. Audrey Matura, Attorney “Just before you called I got another […]
Lord Michael Ashcroft will be on Open Your Eyes this Thursday morning and we’ll hear from him on a wide range of issues, including the shocks caused by the novel coronavirus to the economy, investment and the country’s spiralling debt. Lord Ashcroft has also been assisting in the fight against COVID-19. Today, the Ministry of […]
Belize, along with Barbados and Bahamas, is being cited as the three countries in the Caribbean region hardest hit in the tourism industry by the COVID-19 pandemic. We know that the borders will remain closed until the end of June, which means that airline travel is not in the works before then. Cruise ships schedules […]
Local tourists only contribute to ten percent of the revenues collected by hoteliers across the country; the bulk of its income is made by international tourists who would take advantage of multiple packages. In our one-on-one interview with Belize Hotel Association President Ted Tejada, he agreed that our borders should remain close due to the […]
It is expected that later this week, restaurants at hotels as well as pools will now be allowed to be open to guests. Belize Hotel Association President and General Manager of the Best Western Belize Biltmore Plaza, Ted Tejada told News Five that he has been informed by the Prime Minister that starting this weekend […]
The tourism industry in Belize collapsed as soon as COVID-19 began to spread in the region. As early as January of this year, hoteliers began experiencing cancellations in reservations and by March, hotels and resorts were empty as guests returned to their countries of origin. The industry has been at a standstill and the nine […]
The cause of death of a five-month-old baby girl is under investigation tonight. The parents of baby Kynslee Jasmin Caal rushed her to the Independence Polyclinic on Monday evening after she had been suffering from high fever for days. According to the parents, Alfredo Caal and Filomena Ical, baby Kynslee’s conditions deteriorated with respiratory problems […]
The sighting of heavily armed police officers with guns drawn at an ambulance transporting a patient has triggered debate and raised questions about the driver of vehicle as well as the police. There is the matter of the risk to the life of the patient as well as the behaviour of the cops at the […]
At the western border cargo trucks are still lining up. The Ministry of Immigration intervened on Monday after Guatemalan truck drivers blocked cargo trucks, coming from Guatemala, from entering Belize. The matter, however, remains fluid. The drivers of the trucks are not being allowed into Belize due to the COVID-19, but their cargo and trucks […]
Belmopan resident Guillermo Foreman remains stuck at the northern border. He has been there since Friday after he made his way from the United States through Mexico. He was in Texas and decided to drive to Belize after he realized that he was running out of funds. He says that he had no idea that […]
One last issue on the tourism industry…In his press conference last week, Prime Minister Dean Barrow spoke about the repatriation of Belizeans stranded in other countries. They are expected to return to the country by the end of May. But we are told that securing hotels rooms has become a problem to quarantine the returning […]
The Public Service Union and the Belize National Teachers will meet with the Prime Minister, Dean Barrow on Wednesday to iron out issues regarding the government’s proposed cost-saving measures. G.O.B. is proposing that public servants including teachers forego their increment while ministers give up a month’s salary. Ministers, C.E.O.s, and Heads of Departments will also […]
The COVID-19 pandemic has shed further light on the critical work that nurses do to save lives. International Nurses Day was observed today across the globe to recognize the noble job of nurses. Nurse Deborah Latchman of the Belize Healthcare Partners Limited has been at the frontlines for forty-three long years. She says, the hours […]
National Nurses’ Week is celebrated from May sixth through to May twelfth. On the culmination of this globally recognized event, today the Acting Deputy Director of Health Services Ann Matute appeared on Ask the Experts webcast and paid tribute to the frontline workers. Ann Matute, Acting Deputy Director of Health Services “In Belize, nurses […]
One of the pressing challenges facing the healthcare system in Belize is that there is a shortage of nurses. Currently there are eight hundred and ninety eight active nurses, with ninety-five percent female and five percent male. But even with almost nine hundred nurses, according to the world standards there is a still a shortage. […]
So, hospitals are understaffed as it relates to nurses, which results in nurses being overworked. And because of this, many nurses may experience fatigue and other stresses that come from working long hours in an already high-intensity environment. So, how does the ministry support nurses’ mental health? Eleanor Bennett, Registrar, Nursing and Midwives Council […]
The Belize-Indian community made an eight thousand dollars donation for underprivileged families who are feeling the economic pinch as a result of COVID-19. That eight grand is only a fraction of the total donation which is valued at eighty thousand dollars and being distributed over the span of several weeks. The families are being helped […]
BELTRAIDE is taking its competitiveness month activities online. It’s the unit’s approach to adapt to the current state of affairs due to COVID-19. BELTRAIDE and its partners will hold a number of online workshops and webinars to help business to navigate these challenging times to ensure their economic survival. Executive Director of BELTRAIDE Leroy Almendarez […]
Across the country, thousands of primary school students remain at home where they have been since March twentieth when classes were called off due to the COVID-19 threat. The extended quarantine has seen innovations in the social media space where Facebook and Instagram users are hosting their own shows to entertain and educate each other. […]
