News

Government ‘jumped the gun’ over Rubis leak risks

Published

9 years ago

August 3, 2015

Nassau, 01 Aug 2015 – The government displayed poor judgment and risked giving false hope to Marathon residents by releasing incomplete findings on the health risks associated with the Rubis fuel spill on Robinson Road, Vanessa Haley-Benjamin said.

Lending her support to last week’s protest by Marathon residents outside the station, Haley-Benjamin, CEO of fast-growing social and environmental movement Save The Bays (STB), said authorities were wrong to tell residents they have nothing to fear from the toxic chemicals to which they were exposed for upwards of two years, as medical tests are far from complete – and likely to be less than conclusive when they are.

“The release of these premature results is unfortunate,” she said. “The government clearly jumped the gun. In reality, there is no satisfactory way in the short term to verify conclusively whether a person has been exposed to low levels of certain chemicals, for example benzene.”

Haley-Benjamin noted that according to Dr. van de Weerdt, toxicologist and consultant with the Pan-American Health Organization (PAHO), while the preliminary results may be encouraging, it remains important to establish a complete picture of the situation – both in terms of completing the health risk assessments and being in a position to reassure concerned citizens.

“The government should not be in the business of communicating simplified versions of this very serious situation to the public,” she said.

“With regard to the 223 persons tested, more information is required to understand the extent of the evaluations and if those tested are representative of both the original and possibly any newly impacted areas. To date, we know that 17,000 gallons of fuel have yet to be recovered from the ground. Over time, the impacted area will grow as the benzene spreads with the natural flow of groundwater.

“Residents of this area are very concerned for their safety – and rightfully so considering the known link between aggressive cancer and benzene exposure; and in light of the more than 20 recent cancer-related deaths in the area,” said Haley-Benjamin. “Exposure to low levels of benzene can result in chronic health effects and take a longer period of time to manifest. This underscores the need for long-term medical surveillance by a medical practitioner to detect abnormalities during early onset.”

Haley-Benjamin called for a full report of the investigation by the Department of Environmental Health (DEHS) and PAHO to be compiled and released to the public, and said officials should refrain from making any sweeping statements until such time.

She went on to stress STB’s full support for Justice for Marathon, the grassroots community group that organized last week’s protest, citing the lack of proper response to the leak by both government and Rubis, and the ongoing failure to fully address the concerns of residents.

Haley-Benjamin said STB’s call for stronger environmental legislation is also an effort to protect human health by either through prevention of hazardous pollution, or mitigation of the effects if such situations do arise. To that end, she called for the implementation of an effective response and public warning system for hydrocarbon leaks, and a comprehensive monitoring program for all fuel stations, in line with the recommendations in the report by consultants Black & Veatch, who were contracted by the government to evaluate the response to the Marathon spill more than a year ago.

Save The Bays CEO Vanessa Haley-Benjamin participates in last week’s protest, pointing out 20 recent cancer-related deaths in the area of the fuel leak.

In January 2013, it came to the attention of Rubis and the government that the Robinson Road station had leaked around 24,000 gallons of gasoline into the ground.

The resultant presence of strong hydrocarbon vapors and discovery of large pools of underground gasoline forced the station’s immediate neighbor, Cable Bahamas to evacuate its Customer Service Building (CSB) amid fears of health and safety issues for customers and staff. Eventually, more than 40 staff members had to be treated for exposure.
It has been confirmed that the leak led to the contamination of a wide area of groundwater, including the water supply to several homes and residents have reported a range of health problems.

For two years, Rubis and government officials were aware of the leak and the associated dangers, but failed to make any public announcements, sparking widespread outrage.

Since then, two further possible leaks at Rubis stations in New Providence have come to light. In the wake of the fallout from the Marathon case, both Rubis and the government appeared to take swift action. However yet again, they only broke their silence in response to concerns raised by members of the public.

Related Topics:bahamas rubis Save The Bays

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Arrests & Charged – Providenciales & South Caicos

Deandrea S Hamilton

Magnetic Media is a Telly Award winning multi-media company specializing in creating compelling and socially uplifting TV and Radio broadcast programming as a means for advertising and public relations exposure for its clients.

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NATIONAL SECURITY COUNCIL STATEMENT REGARDING RECENT THREATS MADE AGAINST TURKS AND CAICOS ISLANDS AIRPORTS AND SCHOOLS

Published

24 hours ago

May 6, 2024

Deandrea Hamilton

May 6th, 2024 – As co-chairs of the National Security Council, Her Excellency the Governor and the Honourable Premier condemn strongly recent threats made against Turks and Caicos Islands airports and schools.

We have zero tolerance for these disruptions and the alarm that they cause. The Royal Turks and Caicos Islands Police Force (RTCIPF) continues to work closely with partner agencies and will keep the public updated as we manage the situation.

The National Security Council wishes to reassure residents, travellers and parents that the safety and security of our Islands is its highest priority.

All appropriate measures are being taken to address these threats and all required security protocols are being followed.

The Airports Authority and the Ministry of Education, with school principals are collaborating with the RTCIPF investigations.

We encourage the public to be extra vigilant against phishing and malicious emails and report any suspicious activity to the authorities.

We appreciate the understanding of the public as we work to ensure the safety and well-being of our airports, schools and communities.

Caribbean News

GRACE BAY BEACH RANKED AMONG TOP BEACHES IN THE WORLD’S 50 BEST BEACHES

Published

4 days ago

May 3, 2024

Deandrea Hamilton

Press Release

PROVIDENCIALES, TURKS AND CAICOS ISLANDS (May 3rd, 2024) The Turks and Caicos Islands’ Grace Bay Beach has once again been recognised among the top beaches in the world.

The World’s 50 Best Beaches has listed Grace Bay Beach among the top beaches in the world.

Grace Bay Beach, located on the island of Providenciales was listed at number 17 on the annual list.

The World’s 50 Best Beaches list, sponsored by Banana Boat, is a collaboration with over 1,000 of the world’s leading travel influencers and professionals.

The World’s 50 Best Beaches 2024 is a reflection of the opinions and experiences of top travel influencers and professionals around the world. The beaches were ranked according to eight important criteria: unique characteristics, wildlife, untouched, soundtrack of nature, easy to enter the water, often calm water, not too crowded and frequency of idyllic conditions.

Grace Bay Beach also featured among the top 20 in the 2023 World’s 50 Best Beaches list.

This is the latest accolade for Grace Bay Beach this year. Known for its powdery white sand and breathtakingly turquoise blue water, the famous beach was adjudged the number one Caribbean beach in February in Tripadvisor’s® Travelers’ Choice® Awards and Best of the Best for 2024, ranking number five among the Top 25 Best of the Best Beaches in the world.

In January 2024, Grace Bay was recognised as the #9 Best Beach in the Caribbean in the 10Best Reader’s Choice with Bambarra Beach in Middle Caicos ranked at #2.

Minister of Tourism, the Honourable Josephine Connolly said she is proud of the continued recognition of the leading beach in the Turks and Caicos Islands.

“As a destination that prioritises sustainable development and environmental preservation, the fact that Grace Bay Beach features consistently as one of the top beaches in the world stands as a testament to our commitment to stay “Beautiful by Nature”. I urge visitors to come to the Turks and Caicos Islands to experience this and many other of our beautiful beaches across the Turks and Caicos Islands,” said the Minister.

Tine Holst, Co-Founder of The World’s 50 Best Beaches, said the list is meant to inspire travellers.

She said: “Our 2024 list is a reflection of the countless days spent by our judges, Beach Ambassadors and World’s 50 Best team discovering beaches around the world. The list will help inspire travelers to leave the beaten path behind and enjoy the most stunning and relaxing beaches on earth”.

Read World’s 50 Best Beaches description of Grace Bay Beach here.

News

Family of 16 yo Tourist claims negligence in jet ski death; TCI Coroner’s Court hearing evidence

Published

5 days ago

May 2, 2024

Deandrea Hamilton

Dana Malcolm

Staff Writer

#TurksandCaicos, May 2, 2024 – The family of a 16-year-old who died in Grand Turk six years ago while on a Carnival Cruise into Grand Turk is a little closer to closure as the Turks and Caicos Islands Coroner’s Court has opened his case for an inquest.

“On Wednesday, May 16th, 2018, at 11:30 a.m. Police and Emergency Medical Officials responded to a two-jet-ski collision that left a 16-year-old male dead, near the Cruise Terminal in Grand Turk. Two people were involved in the collision. The second male did not receive any injuries. This incident is under Police investigation.”

That was the brief police report in the aftermath of Nicholas Twyman’s death.

In the comments dozens of residents and visitors claim to have been on the scene that day, as the boy was pulled ashore, some trying to assist while others looked on, horrified.

Coroner Mickia Mills called up the case on March 21, 2024 almost six years after the incident occurred. Mills is in charge of finding out what exactly happened that day in Grand Turk and whether there was any negligence or if it was simply a terrible accident.

That verdict will be for the coroner and her potential jurors to decide. However, the family has shared their version of what happened that day.

A lawsuit filed in Florida Courts in October 2019 (Twyman v. Carnival Corp) detailed the heartbreaking hours that led up to the death of Nicholas. In it, the plaintiffs, listed as Gyjuanna TWYMAN and Michael Twyman, claim that they docked in Grand Turk and were curious about using the jet skis; both parents and the son were told by the Carnival team aboard the ship that there was not a formal shore excursion in Grand Turk involving jet skis, but that jet skis would be available for rent by the hour.

The family from Indiana claims three jet skis were rented, one for Nicholas, another for his father, Michael, and another for a different passenger, while their mother remained ashore. Wet Money Enterprise is listed as the jet ski company.

The family says they were given little instruction on using the Jet Skis, especially their son who was a new rider. The lawsuit maintains that Michael was not given any instructions other than being told where the kill switch was and not to ride too close to the cruise ship.

Sometime during his excursion, the young man crashed into the other jet ski. The family claims that neither Carnival Cruises nor representatives from the jet ski company responded. They say it was his father who spun around on his own jet ski, dived into the water for his son, and brought him to shore.

Once there, it was the young man’s mother, a registered nurse, who started emergency medical care.

When Turks and Caicos’s EMS did arrive after 15 minutes the family claims they were unsure how to use certain medical implements and had to be directed by the distressed mother.

The court documents list the cause of death for the young man as blunt force trauma and drowning, similar to what is listed in the TCI courts.

Coroner Mills, who took up her position in 2024, will oversee the proceedings which continued on Tuesday, April 23rd.