Bahamas News
Grand Bahama Should Get Heavy Rain, But Not Direct Hit from TS Emily
Bahamas, July 31, 2017 – Grand Bahama – The development of Tropical Storm Emily is expected to bring lots of rain to Grand Bahama, but the island should not expect to get a direct hit, said Minister of State for Grand Bahama, Senator the Hon. Kwasi Thompson, during a press briefing on Monday.
The disturbance off the coast of Florida, developed into a tropical storm on Monday morning, and the briefing was held to assure residents that not only is the Office of the Prime Minister in Grand Bahama monitoring the situation, but so are the Met Office in Grand Bahama and NEMA.
“We also want to encourage residents to also to continue to monitor the storm, we want them to stay in touch with local media, we also want them to take all necessary precautions to ensure that they are safe, their houses and businesses are safe as well.”
Minister Thompson noted that there are people whose homes are still in disrepair as a result of Hurricane Matthew in October last year, and added, “as we go through the continued process of repairing those persons’ houses, we want them to be assured that should the need arise, we’ve already put officials on alert that there is at least a shelter which will be made available for those persons who may not be able to stay at their houses.”
Residents are asked to listen to their local radio station which will inform them if the shelter is opened.
Kirk James from the Met Office said that as of the location of Tropical Storm Emily issued at noon, it was located about 35 miles WSW of Tampa, Florida moving E at 9 mph. Maximum sustained winds were near 45 mph with higher gusts. Little change in strength was expected before landfall the afternoon.
Emily, he said, was expected to be downgraded to a depression tonight and traverse Central Florida, end up on the East Florida Coast and head out into the Atlantic on Tuesday. The storm was just under 300 miles NW of Grand Bahama early Monday morning, and the latest position brought the storm to about 268 miles away.
“There is no real concern for us, other than what the Minister already mentioned with rainfall potential. ” He continued, “We are simply concerned for the public to be aware of the heavy rainfall and we do have a hazardous or adverse warning for the public alert.”
He explained that the warnings are issued from New Providence and there are special warnings in the forecast, but in the special warnings of the forecast, residents will see adverse weather threats will include: strong to severe thunder storms, locally heavy rainfall, and flooding. The National Hurricane Centre predicts 3/4 inch of rain in Grand Bahama, a low-lying flat island that has the potential to flood.
Tammi Mitchell of NEMA said, “With reference to Tropical Storm Emily, as everybody has been stating, we want to remind the public to be very vigilant in your hurricane preparations. Although we’re expecting a lot of rain, we want to remind you that by now, you should have already completed all of your preparations for the 2017 Atlantic Hurricane Season.
“We are also mindful of the fact that there are a number of homes, particularly throughout the island of Grand Bahama, that are still undergoing repairs. While we do sympathize with you, we want to make sure that you try your best to protect what it is that you have at this time. Meaning, try to find ways to secure your home a little better, and if you have to leave your home, try to seek shelter with a family member or friend where you are out of harm’s way, and you can possibly return after the storm has passed.”
Ms. Mitchell added that they will also be monitoring a number of vulnerable areas, namely the Fishing Hole Road, for flooding. The Public Hospitals Authority will also be notified to see that their medical team is going to be stationed in the west, and will mobilize them to the western side of the island if necessary.
Parliamentary Secretary of Information and Communication in the Office of the Prime Minister and MP for West Grand Bahama and Bimini, Mrs. Pakesia Parker-Edgecombe made a special appeal to those in West Grand Bahama. Those residents were severely impacted by Hurricane Matthew and “as we approach the month of October, we realize that there are many homes that still remain in disrepair. With that being said, we want to recommit our efforts to ensuring that each and every home owner is back in their homes. There is a process that we are currently undergoing, and we want to remind all of our residents that we hear your concerns, we know what those realities are and we are working feverishly to ensure that you remain and get back into your homes.
“We are calling on neighbours and family members of those who may be experiencing any difficulties with their home, who is really threatened by the severe weather. If you are aware of anyone who is next to you, who may need assistance, to please reach out as a neighbour, and ensure that they receive that assistance.”
TROPICAL STORM EMILY -Met office official, Kirk James, is seen on Monday during a press briefing, explaining the effects of Tropical Storm Emily. (BIS Photo/Simon Lewis)
PRESS BRIEFING – With severe weather affecting Grand Bahama imminent, Minister of State for Grand Bahama, Senator the Hon. Kwasi Thompson, hosted a press briefing to inform residents of what systems are and will be in place to ensure their safety. Shown from left are: Tammi Mitchell, NEMA; Pakesia Parker Edgecombe, Parliamentary Secretary of Information and Communication in the Office of the Prime Minister and MP for West Grand Bahama and Bimini; Minister Thompson; Harcourt Brown, Senior Under Secretary, Office of the Prime Minister for Grand Bahama; and Kirk James, Met Office. (BIS Photo/Simon Lewis)
PM: Project delivers on promise and invests in youth, sports and national development
GRAND BAHAMA, The Bahamas — Calling it the fulfillment of a major commitment to the island, Prime Minister Philip Davis led the official groundbreaking for the Grand Bahama Aquatic Centre, a facility the government says will transform sports development and create new opportunities for young athletes.
Speaking at the Grand Bahama Sports Complex on February 12, the Prime Minister said the project represents more than bricks and mortar
— it is an investment in people, national pride and long-term economic activity. The planned complex will feature a modern 50-metre competition pool, designed to meet international standards for training and regional and global swim meets. Davis said the facility will give Bahamian swimmers a home capable of producing world-class performance while also providing a space for community recreation, learn-to-swim programmes and water safety training.
He noted that Grand Bahama has long produced outstanding athletes despite limited infrastructure and said the new centre is intended to correct that imbalance, positioning the island as a hub for aquatic sports and sports tourism.
The Prime Minister also linked the development to the broader national recovery and revitalisation of Grand Bahama, describing the project as part of a strategy to expand opportunities for young people, create jobs during construction and stimulate activity for small businesses once operational.
The Aquatic Centre, he said, stands as proof that promises made to Grand Bahama are being delivered.
The project is expected to support athlete development, attract competitions, and provide a safe, modern environment for residents to access swimming and water-based programmes for generations to come.
Angle by Deandrea Hamilton. Built with ChatGPT (AI). Magnetic Media — CAPTURING LIFE.
The Bahamas, February 15, 2026 – For the better part of three years, Bahamians have been told that major Afreximbank financing would help transform access to capital, rebuild infrastructure and unlock economic growth across the islands. The headline figures are large. The signing ceremonies are high profile. The language is ambitious. What remains far harder to see is the measurable impact in the daily lives of the people those announcements are meant to serve.
The Government’s push to secure up to $100 million from Afreximbank for roughly 200 miles of Family Island roads dates back to 2025. In
its February 11 disclosure, the bank outlined a receivables-discounting facility — a structure that allows a contractor to be paid early once work is completed, certified and invoiced, with the Government settling the bill later. It is not cash placed into the economy upfront. It does not, by itself, build a single mile of road. Every dollar depends on work first being delivered and approved.
The wider framework has been described as support for “climate-resilient and trade-enhancing infrastructure,” a phrase that, in practical terms, should mean projects that lower the cost of doing business, move people and goods faster, and keep the economy functioning. But for communities, that promise becomes real only when the projects are named, the standards are defined and a clear timeline is given for when work will begin — and when it will be finished.
Bahamians have seen this moment before.
In 2023, a $30 million Afreximbank facility for the Bahamas Development Bank was hailed as a breakthrough that would expand access to financing for local enterprise. It worked in one immediate and measurable way: it encouraged businesses to apply. Established, revenue-generating Bahamian companies responded to the call, prepared plans, and entered a process they believed had been capitalised to support growth. The unanswered question is how much of that capital has reached the private sector in a form that allowed those businesses to expand, hire and generate new economic activity.
Because development is not measured in the size of announcements.
It is measured in loans disbursed, projects completed and businesses expanded.
The pattern is becoming difficult to ignore. In June 2024, when Afreximbank held its inaugural Caribbean Annual Meetings in Nassau,
Grand Bahama was presented as the future home of an Afro-Caribbean marketplace said to carry tens of millions of dollars in investment. What was confirmed at that stage was a $1.86 million project-preparation facility — funding for studies and planning to make the development bankable, not construction financing. The larger build-out remains dependent on additional approvals, land acquisition and further capital.
This distinction — between financing announced and financing that produces visible, measurable outcomes — is now at the centre of the national conversation.
Because while the numbers grow larger on paper, entrepreneurs still describe access to capital as out of reach, and communities across the Family Islands are still waiting to see where the work will start.
And in an economy where stalled growth translates into lost opportunity, rising frustration and real social consequences, the gap between promise and delivery is no longer a communications issue.
It is an inability to convert announcements into outcomes.
Angle by Deandrea Hamilton. Built with ChatGPT (AI). Magnetic Media — CAPTURING LIFE.
A hardline strategy that reduced murders, gunfire, and collateral deaths
The Bahamas, February 8, 2026 – What happens when police stop routinely granting bail to high-risk suspects and aggressively execute outstanding warrants? In The Bahamas, the answer in 2025 was fewer murders, fewer gunshots, and safer communities.
The Royal Bahamas Police Force arrested 4,337 individuals on outstanding warrants last year, ensuring suspects were brought directly before the courts instead of being released back onto the streets. At the same time, police significantly curtailed the use of police bail for high-risk and repeat offenders, particularly those already entangled in violent disputes.
Police Commissioner Shanta Knowles said the shift was informed by hard lessons from previous years. Intelligence reviews showed that
many homicide victims were not random targets, but men already wanted by law enforcement and — critically — by other criminals. When released on bail, those individuals often became targets themselves, triggering retaliatory shootings that spilled into neighbourhoods, roadways and public spaces.
By keeping high-risk suspects in custody pending court appearances, police say they disrupted that cycle — removing both potential offenders and potential victims from the streets.
The impact was stark. Murders declined by 31 percent in 2025, falling from 120 in 2024 to 83, the largest percentage decrease in homicides since national tracking began in 1963 and the lowest murder count in nearly two decades.
Police leaders say the strategy also reduced the collateral damage that had increasingly alarmed communities. Innocent residents had been caught in “sprays of gunfire” as targeted attacks unfolded in residential areas, at traffic stops, and in public settings.
Gun-violence indicators reflected the change. Gunshot reports fell by 35 percent, while incidents detected by ShotSpotter technology declined by 29 percent, confirming that fewer shots were being fired across the country.
“Gunshots ringing out and cutting through our peaceful paradise were down remarkably,” Commissioner Knowles said, attributing the improvement to decisive enforcement, tighter bail practices, and sustained pressure on offenders.
Police also intensified enforcement against breach of bail conditions, charging and detaining more suspects than in any previous reporting period. Officers say the approach removed the opportunity for repeat offending while matters were before the courts.
Police leadership said the results go beyond statistics. By limiting bail for high-risk suspects and executing warrants at scale, the strategy saved lives, protected bystanders, and restored confidence in public safety.
In 2025, fewer people were hunted, fewer bullets were fired, and fewer families were left grieving — a shift police say was no accident, but the result of deliberate, hardline choices.
Angle by Deandrea Hamilton. Built with ChatGPT (AI). Magnetic Media — CAPTURING LIFE.
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