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92 Earthquakes recorded in Jamaica last year

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#Jamaica, January 9, 2018 – Kingston – Ninety-two earthquakes were recorded in Jamaica in 2017.  Scientific Officer at the Earthquake Unit at The University of the West Indies (UWI), Karleen Black, made the disclosure at the Earthquake Awareness Week launch on Monday (January 8) at the Office of Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Management (ODPEM) on Haining Road, St. Andrew.

She said “felt earthquake reports” were received for eight events with magnitudes ranging from 3.1 to 3.6.   Two of these were in St. Elizabeth, two in Portland, one in Manchester, one in St. Mary and the other two were offshore, with one in the region of Cuba and the other in the Pedro Banks.   Ms. Black informed that an additional 33 events were detected locally, but these were later classified as possible explosions.

In total, the seismograph network, which is comprised of 12 stations across the island, detected and recorded 279 tremors occurring locally and regionally.   Seventy-five were near earthquakes and 79 were distant earthquakes coming from areas such as South America and other parts of the globe, she indicated.

Meanwhile, Ms. Black noted that a damaging earthquake can occur anytime, day or night “so the onus is on us to be in a constant state of readiness if we are to safely navigate the effects of a major earthquake.”   She said that for this year, the Earthquake Unit will work towards upgrading its seismograph network in order to improve its capabilities.

“As such, we hope to add a new (seismic) station to our complement of 12, making it 13.  The unit will also be benefiting from an upcoming Jamaica Social Investment Fund Project (JSIF), which is sponsored by the World Bank, as part of its disaster reduction efforts,” she pointed out.

Under JSIF’s Disaster Vulnerability Reduction Project (DVRP), 10 digital seismometer systems will be placed at seismic stations across the island to give data on an earthquake’s magnitude, depth and epicentre on land and offshore.

Earthquake Awareness Week is being observed from January 7-13 under the theme ‘Preparing for the Quake Helps Reduce Damage After the Shakes’.   While Jamaica has experienced several tremors, the last major event was the great Kingston earthquake of 1907, which caused more than 1,000 deaths, damaged numerous buildings and started several fires.

The 1692 Port Royal quake was perhaps the largest and most damaging, with about 5,000 deaths from the quake itself and the subsequent outbreak of yellow fever. A section of the town sank into the sea.

Release: JIS

 

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Men who had Murdered Man, Marley Higgs’ cell phone face Court

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Wilkie Arthur

Freelance Court Correspondent

The prosecution intends to try two young North Caicos men, both age 21 for the offense of possession of property of a murdered man, property that was stolen and landed in their possession.

The phone belonged to Peureton ‘Marley’ Higgs, who is believed to have been an innocent gunned down at his apartment complex in the Glass Shack area in a spray of bullets on February 2 that killed another man and wounded two others, including a ten-year-old little girl.

The cell phone was described as white in colour, an iPhone, in a hard black case. 

On Monday, March 18th, JEFFVANO HANDFIELD of North Caicos pleaded not guilty to the offense, and the matter was adjourned to April 2024. He was granted bail in the matter.

A second North Caicos man was charged similarly.  

SARENO CAPELLAN aka, Kino Williams is the second individual brought before the court pertaining to the said cellphone. He appeared in court a week after JEFFVANO HANDFIELD, the date being Monday March 25th 2024.

The case for the Crown is that both men sometime in February of this year possessed the cellphone knowing or suspecting it to be stolen property.

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Supreme Court Closed for Easter

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NOTICE is hereby given that the Easter Recess shall commence on Friday 29th April, 2024 and end on Friday 5th April, 2024. During the Easter Recess Judge Selochan will be available to deal only with matters that are urgent or require prompt attention.

Court Business During the Easter Recess

A person who wishes to have a matter heard during the recess must file a certificate of urgency along with an affidavit, which must set out the reasons why the matter is urgent or requires prompt attention. The matter will not be listed during the recess unless the Judge deems it fit for urgent hearing.

Opening Hours During the Easter Holiday

The Supreme Court’s last sitting day for the first term is Thursday 28th March, 2024. The Court will officially resume sittings on Monday 8th April, 2024. The Supreme Court Offices in both Grand Turk and Providenciales will continue to operate while the Court is not sitting during the recess.

The Court Office will be closed on the following public holidays:

  • Friday 29th March, 2024 (Good Friday) CLOSED
  • Monday 1st April, 2024 (Easter Monday) CLOSED

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TURKS AND CAICOS ISLANDS DELEGATION ATTENDANCE AT THE NORTH CARIBBEAN SECURITY SUMMIT 21-22 MARCH 2024

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Her Excellency the Governor, Dileeni Daniel-Selvaratnam, is in Nassau this week, leading a delegation from the Turks and Caicos Islands to the Third Annual Northern Caribbean Security Summit. The forum brings together security leads from the Turks and Caicos Islands, the Bahamas, the US and the UK to focus collective critical efforts against shared threats in the region.

The delegation from the Turks and Caicos Islands includes the Hon. Minister of Immigration Arlington Musgrove, the Hon. Attorney General, Rhondalee Braithwaite-Knowles OBE KC and senior leaders from Border Force, the Department of Rehabilitation and Community Supervision, the Financial Intelligence Agency, the National Security Secretariat, the Regiment and the Royal Turks and Caicos Islands Police Force. Additionally, the UK delegation includes the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office Deputy Director, the Head of the UK Joint Maritime Security Centre and regional leads from the Ministry of Defence and the National Crime Agency.

Her Excellency the Governor opened the Turks and Caicos Islands’ contribution with a strategic overview of the security situation and growing capabilities. Presentations were given by members of the delegation on the Turks and Caicos Islands’ security posture to tackle transnational organised crime, coordinated efforts in developing the intelligence picture, cyber security, border security, financial crimes and wider impacts from the deterioration of Haiti.

Her Excellency the Governor held meetings with partners to discuss and prioritise areas of tactical focus and joint operations around irregular migration and securing maritime borders, including with the Commissioner of the Royal Bahamian Police Force (with his senior leadership team), the Commodore of the Royal Bahamas Defence Force, senior leaders of the US Coast Guard and the US Customs and Border Protection. Outcomes of which, underpin increased operational coordination and information sharing. 

While in Nassau, Her Excellency also made courtesy visits to Her Excellency the Governor-General Cynthia A Pratt, Hon. Speaker of the House of Assembly Patrcia Deveaux, the Rt Rev Bishop Laish Boyd, the British High Commissioner to the Bahamas Tom Hartley, and the Turks and Caicos Islands Diaspora Office.

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