ESTABLISHED 1965 www.caymancompass.com – 50 CENTS – THURSDAY MAY 4, 2017 Personal Insurance In 1984, customers knew us as BritCay. In 2017, they and the next generation still do. Your insurance cover with BritCay is supported by a group of companies managing $390 million in insurance and pension contributions. More cover, more benefits, more security. BRITISH CAYMANIAN INSURANCE COMPANY LIMITED BritCay House, 236 Eastern Avenue, George Town, P.O. Box 74, KY1-1102 Tel. 949-8699 www.britcay.ky A member of Colonial Group International Ltd. : insurance, health, pensions, life Call 949-8699 www.britcay.ky cgigrp Four die in ‘horrific’ East End crash; adult and child remain in hospital Excessive speed cited; no police pursuit BRENT FULLER bfuller@pinnaclemedialtd.com A speeding car with two pas- sengers, including an 11-year-old boy, riding in its open trunk col- lided with a rental car in East End Tuesday night, killing four people, three of them elderly tourists from the U.K. The fourth person who died, a 22-year-old Jamaican man, was driving the speeding Honda Ac- cord that smashed head-on into the rented Kia Rio, police said. The two passengers riding in the Hon- da’s trunk, a 26-year-old Jamaican man and the child, were seriously injured and remained hospitalized as of press time Wednesday. “It’s a horrific crash,” Police Commissioner Derek Byrne said Tuesday night at the scene on Austin Conolly Drive just north- east of the junction with John McLean Drive. The three tourists in the Kia rental vehicle were staying at Mor- ritt’s Tortuga Resort where they had owned a time-share since 2009, according to the resort’s General Manager Jose Kirchman. Mr. Kirchman said the three ar- rived in Cayman on April 28 for a two-week stay. The Cayman Com- pass is withholding their identities Wednesday pending family notifi- cation occurring in the U.K. “I met them last year; they’re lovely people,” Mr. Kirchman said. “They loved to party, they were big dancers. I actually danced with them on Monday night.” The visitors were apparently headed back to the Morritt’s resort Tuesday around 7:15 p.m. when their vehicle was struck. According to Royal Cayman Is- lands Police Service accounts of the crash, a black Honda Accord headed toward Bodden Town on Austin Conolly Drive blew past a police vehicle at “excessive speed.” The police vehicle was headed in the opposite direction. RCIPS Chief Inspector Frank Owens said a police mobile radar device inside the patrol vehicle clocked the Honda traveling over the 30 mile-an-hour speed limit, at which point the officer activated his emergency lights and started turning around to follow the Honda. “On turning around, the Honda Accord was out of sight,” Mr. Owens said. “A short time later, the Puerto Rico announces historic bankruptcy-type process SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) – Puerto Rico’s governor on Wednesday an- nounced a historic restructuring of a portion of the U.S. territory’s $70 billion debt through courts after ne- gotiations with bondholders failed. The announcement marks the big- gest bankruptcy-type process ever for the U.S. municipal bond market. Gov. Ricardo Rossello said that a federal control board overseeing the island’s finances agreed with his request late Tuesday to put certain debts before a court. “We’re going to protect our people,” he said hours after the U.S. territory was hit with multiple law- suits from creditors seeking to recu- perate the millions of dollars they invested in bonds issued by Puerto Rico’s government, which has de- clared several defaults amid a 10- year recession. Rossello said one of the lawsuits sought to claim all revenues gen- erated by the island’s Treasury De- partment for bondholders. “I’m not going to allow that to happen,” he said. Rossello said the debts of cer- tain agencies will be restructured in court, while others will be resolved through ongoing negotiations with bondholders. He said he did not yet have details on the breakdown of those debts. The island’s Electric Power Authority has some $9 billion of debt, the Aqueducts and Sewer Authority has roughly $5 billion of PLEASE TURN TO PAGE 8 » Police officers spent most of the overnight period Tuesday into Wednesday morning reviewing evidence from the crash scene. – PHOTO: TANEOS RAMSAY Police Commissioner Derek Byrne speaks with RCIPS officers at the scene of Tuesday night’s crash. – PHOTO: BRENT FULLER PLEASE TURN TO PAGE 8 »2 LOCAL&REGIONAL THURSDAY MAY 4, 2017 • CAYMAN COMPASS Daily Matinees Every Day $8.00 Seniors, Mon-Fri Before 6pm Cayman Cinema@cbcinema6cbcinema6 CHIPS (R) 1:10 I 4:15 I 7:10 VIP I 10:10 UNFORGETTABLE (R) 1:00 I 7:30 SMURFS: THE LOST VILLAGE 3D (PG) 12:35 2D I 3:45 I 7:00 2D I 9:55 GIFTED (PG13) 1:15 I 7:15 GOING IN STYLE (PG13) 3:55 I 10:00 THE FATE OF THE FURIOUS 3D (PG13) 12:30 VIP I 3:40 VIP I 6:50 2D 9:40 I 9:50 VIP BOSS BABY 3D (PG) 12:45 2D I 3:50 I 6:50 2D I 9:45 - THURSDAY - SATURDAY NIGHT: For your viewing pleasure, minors under the age of 18 will not be admitted to any film starting after 6pm, unless accompanied by their parent. *Additional charges will apply per 3D ticket requested. 640-FILM (640-3456) Man jailed for taking too many conch Sentence must deter defendant and others, magistrate says CAROL WINKER cwinker@pinnaclemedialtd.com A man who took too many conch while on bail for taking conch during closed season was jailed on Wednesday for 120 days. Hank Thomas Jose Ebanks, 34, pleaded guilty to both charges. Magistrate Kirsty-Ann Gunn indicated she was giving him the usual one-third discount for his guilty pleas. Ebanks admitted taking 83 conch and one lobster in the Rum Point area on Oct. 9, 2015. This was during the closed season, when no taking of any marine life was allowed. On that occasion he gave a “no comment” interview and was bailed, Crown counsel Claire Wetton told the court. In March 2016, while on bail, Ebanks took 41 conch within a 24-hour period, again from Rum Point. The limit is five per day, Ms. Wetton noted. This time when inter- viewed by police, Ebanks told them, “I was hungry. I went out and got some conch be- cause I was hungry.” In court this week, the magistrate asked him why he had taken so many conch. “I gotta pay bills – eat, too,” he replied. “I know it’s against the law,” Ebanks continued, “but I’m not going to rob anybody or break into somebody’s house and take what they worked hard for.” He added that taking conch was “something I grew up doing.” The magistrate adjourned briefly to obtain a probation report about the defendant. When court resumed, she re- minded him that these were not his first offenses against marine conservation leg- islation – he had a convic- tion from 2013 for an unli- censed speargun. The magistrate pointed out further that Ebanks had been on probation at the time of these offenses. She asked if he had completed a com- munity service order for 60 hours and he confirmed that he had. She asked if he had attended an anger manage- ment course and he said he had been to some sessions, but acknowledged he had not graduated. Questioned further, Ebanks said he had gone to coun- seling, had provided sam- ples for drug testing and had ceased using cocaine. He ad- mitted two charges of failing to surrender to custody. In passing sentence, the magistrate said she would describe as “significant” the number of conch Ebanks had taken. The aggravating factor for the first offense was that it was committed during closed season. The aggra- vating factor for the second offense was that it was com- mitted while on bail for the first offense. In both cases, the amount of conch taken was not for personal consumption. “You took it for financial gain, albeit to pay bills,” she told Ebanks. Another aggravating factor was that the offenses were committed while he was on probation. On the other hand, the single most mitigating factor was Ebanks pleading guilty, thus saving the time of the court and ev- eryone who would have been involved in a trial. The magistrate said the sentence she passed had to be a deterrent to Ebanks and a deterrent to the public. It had to make plain that such offenses will not be toler- ated because they have a significant effect on marine life. Laws had been passed so that the next generation would benefit from marine life, she pointed out. “We must reflect soci- ety’s displeasure at this of- fending,” she said. Ebanks’s first offense would have attracted 60 days’ imprisonment after trial, but with credit for his guilty plea it would be 40 days, with seven days concurrent for the lobster. The sentence for the second offense would have been 120 days, but with credit it was 80 days. The total sentence was 120 days plus 14 days for failing to surrender to custody. To complete the sentencing exercise, she noted that Ebanks had spent time on curfew and gave him 14 days credit for that. The final sen- tence was therefore 120 days. Ebanks thanked the mag- istrate as he was returned to the cells. DOMINICAN REPUBLIC ADDS BORDER TROOPS AHEAD OF UN HAITI EXIT SANTO DOMINGO, Dominican Republic (AP) – The Dominican Republic is sending 1,000 more soldiers to its border with Haiti to prepare for any fallout from the with- drawal of UN peacekeeping troops from its neighbor. Armed Forces Minister Ruben Paulino says the new troops will join 1,500 soldiers regularly stationed along the border. He made the announcement Tuesday. Paulino says the troops are intended to protect against any increase in the smuggling of drugs or weapons as well as a po- tential rise in illegal immi- gration in the event of in- creased instability following the scheduled pullout of nearly 2,400 UN troops from Haiti in October. The countries share a 215-mile border on the Ca- ribbean island of Hispaniola. The UN force has been in Haiti since the ouster of President Jean-Bertrand Aristide in 2004. PRESS GROUP: MEXICO AMONG MOST RISKY PLACES FOR REPORTERS MEXICO CITY (AP) – Mexico is one of the most dangerous countries in the world for journalists, and the few cases in which killers go to jail have not made a dent in such violence, a journalism advo- cacy group said Tuesday. A report from the New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists said “en- demic impunity allows crim- inal gangs, corrupt officials, and cartels to silence their critics” in Mexico, where it said over 50 journalists and media workers have been killed since 2010. A case in point was the Jan. 21, 2016, killing of Marcos Hernandez Bautista, who was a reporter for the newspaper Noticias, Voz e Imagen de Oaxaca. In March, a court in the southern state of Oaxaca con- victed a former municipal po- lice commander in the killing and sentenced him to 30 years. But the former mayor who the commander said ordered the slaying was not tried. Journalists came under fire across the country in the ensuing weeks, resulting in March becoming the deadliest month for the press in Mexico in recent memory. On March 2, Cecilio Pineda Birto, a freelancer, was slain in southern Guerrero state. Newspaper columnist Ri- cardo Monlui was killed March 19 in Veracruz state. Armando Arrieta Granados, news editor for the newspaper La Opinion de Poza Rica, was seriously wounded by a gunman in late March in the same state. A reporter for the news- paper La Jornada, Miro- slava Breach, was shot to death March 23 outside her home in the northern city of Chihuahua. A bodyguard protecting threatened journalist Julio Omar Gomez was fatally shot in the Baja California Sur re- sort of San Jose del Cabo. In April, in that state’s capital, La Paz, a bullet killed Maxi- mino Rodriguez, who worked for a local internet portal called Colectivo Pericu. On Tuesday, the state pros- ecutor’s office in the central state of Morelos announced that it was investigating the slaying of radio journalist Fi- liberto Alvarez on Saturday in Tlaquiltenango. SpaceX launches top-secret spy satellite for US government CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) – SpaceX launched a top-se- cret spy satellite for the U.S. government this week and then successfully landed the booster for recycling. The unmanned Falcon 9 rocket lifted off from its NASA-leased pad at Kennedy Space Center in Florida. It was SpaceX’s first mis- sion for the National Re- connaissance Office. No de- tails were divulged about the newly launched NRO satel- lite. Instead, SpaceX focused its webcast on the successful touchdown of the first- stage booster. The leftover booster – its job done – landed next door at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station several minutes after liftoff. Sonic booms rattled the area, serving as a Monday morning wake-up call. Across the country, cheers erupted at SpaceX Mission Control at company headquarters in Hawthorne, California. SpaceX strives to return most of its boosters for reuse. The company’s first recycled rocket flew last month. This was the fourth SpaceX booster landing at Cape Canaveral; even more have landed on ocean platforms. SpaceX founder and chief executive Elon Musk said via Twitter that both the launch and landing were good. But the upper-level wind at liftoff was “unusually high.” “Tough call, as high alti- tude wind shear was at 98.6 percent of the theoretical load limit,” he said in a tweet. Earlier in the morning, he noted about the wind, “Wor- rying, but not a showstopper.” Sunday’s launch attempt was foiled at the last minute by a bad sensor. A Falcon 9 SpaceX rocket carrying a classified payload for the National Reconnaissance Office lifts off from the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida, on Monday. - PHOTO: AP/JOHN RAOUX3 LOCAL NEWS CAYMAN COMPASS • THURSDAY MAY 4, 2017 Candidates bemoan debate no-shows BRENT FULLER bfuller@pinnaclemedialtd.com Two political hopefuls for the district of George Town West be- moaned poor attendance during recent candidate debates, not by audience members, but by the can- didates themselves. Only independent candidates Ellio Solomon and Dennie Warren Jr. appeared at the Cayman Islands Fur- ther Education Centre Tuesday night to talk about issues affecting their district. Political party candidates David Wight of the Progressives and Jonathan Piercy with the Cayman Democratic Party did not attend. Mr. Solomon said he wished to “register his disappointment” that his two opponents didn’t attend Tuesday. “I think that’s sad when persons running [for elected office] can’t give the voters that level of transparency,” he said. Mr. Warren said he also was dis- appointed in the forum attendance on the candidate side. “I have the flu and I have a back injury that I’m going to have treat- ment for [Wednesday],” he said. “I can’t think of a reason [the other candidates] shouldn’t be here.” According to Chamber of Com- merce representatives, both Mr. Piercy and Mr. Wight notified them before the debate that they could not attend for various reasons. Those two men are far from the only candidates who did not attend the Chamber-sponsored debates held in all 19 voting districts on Grand Cayman. In George Town South, a similar situation occurred where both polit- ical party-backed candidates did not attend. Candidate no-shows also oc- curred in the North Side, Savannah, and Bodden Town West forums. “We’ve invited every candidate,” said Chamber of Commerce Chief Executive Wil Pineau on Wednesday. “It’s really up to them whether they want to attend or not.” Health matters The state of public health took center stage for the candidates who did attend the George Town West forum Tuesday night. Both were asked for their ideas on reforming national healthcare costs, which are currently driving a $1.7 billion 20-year liability, ac- cording to government’s most re- cent estimates. Mr. Warren said he was more concerned about the daily cost of healthcare to local families, who he said were paying more for the same care than that received by “medical tourists” at the Health City Cayman Islands facility. “There seems to be some- thing very different taking place at Health City than there is at the Health Services Authority,” he said. “I would like to investigate all the reasons that is the case.” Mr. Solomon suggested setting up a “medical care fund” similar to a pension savings fund that local workers could contribute to in an- ticipation of when they retire. Mr. Solomon said he also be- lieved some local doctors would agree to performing some “pro bono” work for indigent patients a cer- tain number of times a month to as- sist those who don’t currently have healthcare coverage. Mr. Solomon also suggested ap- proval of legislation that he has already drafted that sets up a council to govern medical research in the Cayman Islands, which could provide an alternate in- dustry and more local jobs. He said diversification of Cayman’s current two economic pillars – financial services and tourism – was “abso- lutely required.” “Medical research is a $36 bil- lion a year industry in the U.S. alone,” he said. Mr. Warren proposed allowing Caymanian businesses to grow can- nabis for use in cannabinoid oils for export. He said this was a billion dollar industry worldwide and that demand was there for the services, particularly in the medical field. “We should not sit around and wait for these opportunities to pass us by,” he said. Pensions The two men also took widely differing views on recent changes to the National Pensions Law that pre- vent foreign workers from “cashing out” their pension accounts when the leave the jurisdiction. Mr. Warren said pensions were for a “specific purpose” – retirement income later in life. “We would be doing ourselves a disservice if we were to allow people to take [money] out of their pensions funds and then return to the Cayman Islands and run the risk of becoming a burden to … so- ciety,” he said. Mr. Solomon argued that a greater negative impact would be felt when a “significant number of persons” left the country. “When we hurt our economy, we’re hurting locals,” he said. George Town West candidates Ellio Solomon, left, and Dennie Warren, Jr. await questions from Chamber of Commerce President-elect Paul Byles and Chief Executive Officer Wil Pineau Tuesday night. - PHOTO: BRENT FULLERThe islands’ most-trusted news source 4 – EDITORIAL – Opinion&Letters The Cayman Compass welcomes comments, opinions and viewpoints from readers. Letters to the editor can be emailed to editor@pinnaclemedialtd.com, submitted via www.caymancompass.com, sent by post or hand-delivered to the Compass office. PRINTED AND PUBLISHED BY: Caymanian Compass Limited (a subsidiary of Pinnacle Media Ltd) Compass Centre Shedden Road, George Town SEND US YOUR VIEWS OR NEWS: P.O. Box 1365 Grand Cayman KY1-1108, Cayman Islands Telephone: (345) 815-0095 Email: newsdesk@pinnaclemedialtd.com ADVERTISE WITH US: Telephone: (345) 949-5111 Email: sales@pinnaclemedialtd.com Website: www.caymancompass.com PUBLISHERS DAVID R. LEGGE AND VICKI L. LEGGE EDITOR-IN-CHIEF DAVID R. LEGGE EXECUTIVE EDITOR PATRICK BRENDEL A MEMBER OF THE INTER-AMERICAN PRESS ASSOCIATION “Give light and the people will findtheirownway” The concept of free speech is the foundation upon which all other rights are based. Like any other right, of course, free speech is logically subject to certain restrictions. Legal limitations should be as narrow and as well-defined as possible, with the purpose being to safeguard other fundamental rights, such as personal safety or recourse to justice. When it comes to speech that is harmful, hateful or oth- erwise “reckless,” the standard for “legal speech” is much more relaxed than the standard for “responsible speech,” which varies according to where the speech occurs, how widely it is disseminated and who delivers it. Which brings us to recent indulgences in clearly “reckless speech” by Cayman Islands Premier Alden McLaughlin, who as the highest elected public official in the country should accordingly have his statements held to the highest standard of accountability. (Put another way, the premier’s words have weight.) This past Saturday, Premier McLaughlin – in public, in front of a crowd and a TV camera – accused his former political assistant, now turned political rival, Kenneth Bryan, of being “arrested more than once” while he worked for the premier. Premier McLaughlin’s potentially damaging allegation was accompanied by no actual evidence … merely the rec- ollection of a chat that supposedly occurred two-and-a-half years ago between him and former Police Commissioner David Baines, who has since departed from these islands and is presumably enjoying his post-Cayman life in a rather nice locale of Europe. For the record, police told us early Wednesday after- noon that “we have not been able to find any other arrest of Mr. Bryan.” If we could obtain that clarifying information so easily, the premier certainly could have as well. It turns out, Saturday’s incident wasn’t Premier McLaughlin’s first foray into reckless speech. In February, in the midst of the criminal trial of former University College of the Cayman Islands President Hassan Syed, the premier participated in a radio interview in which he called Syed a “scamp” and questioned the evidence of a police officer who had testified in the case. Premier McLaughlin’s reckless speech resulted in a three-day delay in the trial, led to an application from the defense team to discharge the jury, and jeopardized the outcome of the proceedings. Lest anyone forgets – we at the Compass certainly will not – in June 2015, Premier McLaughlin took to the floor of the Legislative Assembly and accused this newspaper of engaging in a “treasonous attack on the Cayman Islands and on all the people of Cayman” – for the simple reason that he did not like an editorial we had written (an editorial that, by the way, called for the rooting out of corruption in our fair country). In that instance, the premier’s speech ignited a firestorm of controversy that attracted international scrutiny and engendered deeply negative attention from global observers. This editorial singles out Premier McLaughlin not because of who he is (Alden) but because of the position he holds (Premier). He has the highest office, and he should have the highest standards. The tendency to engage in reckless speech is not confined to any particular segment of our society. Tune in to any local “talk-back” radio show or peruse the comments sections on local “blogs” and you will discover reckless commentary from all corners, from important public officials down to members of Cayman’s anonymous populace. Earlier this year, three MLAs – Alva Suckoo, Arden McLean and Winston Connolly – alleged local law firms had hired private investigators to follow them because of their opposition to the Legal Practitioners Bill. They eventually made a report to police, who were unable to substantiate their sensational claims. The reck- lessness was there; the evidence was not. When reckless speech is uttered by a public official (and particularly when the official happens, like Premier McLaughlin, to be an attorney), the salient observation is that either he knows exactly what he’s doing … or he doesn’t. Which is worse? The case against reckless speech: Exhibit ‘Alden’ THURSDAY MAY 4, 2017 • CAYMAN COMPASS Why Warren Buffett beat me TED SEIDES Nine years ago, Warren Buffett and I made a 10-year charitable wager that pitted the returns of five funds of hedge funds against a Stan- dard & Poor’s 500 index fund. With eight months remaining, for all intents and purposes, the bet is over. I lost. Warren discussed the bet in this year’s annual letter to Berkshire Hathaway share- holders, explaining that the high fees active money man- agers charge create a head- wind relative to low-cost passive alternatives. He is correct that hedge-fund fees are high, and his reasoning is convincing. Fees matter in in- vesting, no doubt about it. It’s just not the whole story. This “footnote” to his letter describes some of the addi- tional investment lessons we can draw from our experiment. No. 1. Price matters … eventually The higher the price an in- vestor pays for an asset, the less he should expect to earn. When we made the bet in 2008, the S&P 500 traded at the high end of its historical range. Probabilities strongly suggested the S&P 500 would generate low returns in the future, which would have helped the relative perfor- mance of hedge funds. But the S&P 500 defied the odds and rewarded investors with a historically normal 7.1 percent nine-year annualized return. A high starting price didn’t translate to low re- turns during this period, but investors should be cautious extrapolating that outcome to the future. No. 2. Risk matters … eventually Good investment deci- sions incorporate a compre- hensive assessment of the trade-off between reward and risk. Our bet focused on returns, casting aside the degree of risk assumed in earning those returns. Warren and I have written during the past two years that he will win the bet ab- sent a market crash. Hedge funds tend to significantly outperform in bear mar- kets, as demonstrated in 2008 and 2000-2002. These same risk-mitigating proper- ties tempered hedge-fund re- turns in the rally that began in March 2009. Although a market crash is highly unlikely in the near future, a consideration of risk as well as return changes the debate as we draw con- clusions about the last de- cade and look forward to the next one. No. 3. A passive investment in the S&P 500 is an active bet Passive investing is the rage today, and the S&P 500 is the most popular index. During the last nine years, the S&P 500 outper- formed most other invest- ment options. All too often, those two facts go hand in hand; investors tend to chase returns. Choosing the S&P 500 as representative of the market isn’t as simple as it may appear. The S&P 500 is a strategy that is concentrated in the largest U.S.-listed stocks. Compared to more diversified, low-cost passive investments, the S&P 500 is biased toward U.S. stocks relative to global stocks and large companies rela- tive to small ones. These two bets generated anomalously strong relative performance in this period. No. 4. Be careful comparing apples and oranges Comparing hedge funds and the S&P 500 is a little bit like asking which team is better, the Chicago Bulls or the Chicago Bears. Like the Bulls and the Bears in the Windy City, hedge funds and the S&P 500 play dif- ferent sports. Hedge funds are not lim- ited to investments in large U.S. stocks, and professional investors in hedge funds don’t use the S&P 500 as their benchmark. Warren’s descrip- tion of active managers nec- essarily underperforming as a group by the amount of fees charged is precisely true when the active managers’ investment universe is iden- tical to the passive alterna- tive. In this bet, it wasn’t. It was global diversifica- tion that hurt hedge fund re- turns more than fees. In fact, a low-cost index of large global companies, the MSCI All Country World Index, al- most exactly matched hedge- fund returns during the same nine-year period of our bet. This index isn’t a perfect benchmark for hedge funds either, but it is a lot closer to an apples-to-apples com- parison than hedge funds and the S&P 500. Forget the Bulls and Bears; Warren picked the World Se- ries Champion Chicago Cubs! His excellent choice of the S&P 500 for the bet was the main reason he won. No. 5. In investing and in life, we live through only one experience out of many possibilities Imagine a game of Texas Hold ‘em poker. Two players bet “all-in” after seeing their two hole cards before the flop. The one with the stronger hand is the odds-on favorite to win. If the players repeat an identical game over and over again, the fa- vorite will win the hand most of the time. But if they play only one hand, anything can happen. The player with the better cards may lose even if he “should” win. The unexpected strength of the S&P 500 was a key contributor to Warren’s vic- tory. Despite trading for a high multiple of earnings and facing an elevated level of risk, the S&P 500 performed in-line with historical aver- ages. However unlikely that outcome may have seemed nine years ago, it is the only one that played out. No. 6. Long-term returns only matter if we invest for the long term Studies of human be- havior repeatedly point to the inability of investors to stay the course through tough times. The S&P 500 had a harrowing start to the bet in 2008. In October of that year, Warren publicly made a pre- scient market call, reminding us to be greedy when others were fearful. The S&P 500 index fund fell 50 percent in the first 14 months of the bet. Many in- vestors lacked Warren’s un- paralleled fortitude, and bailed out of the markets when the pain became too severe. An investor who pan- icked and only later re-en- tered the market would have found that his bank account at the end of the bet was a lot smaller than a hypothetical account in which he earned the index-fund returns for the whole period. My guess is that dou- bling down on a bet with Warren Buffett for the next 10 years would hold greater- than-even odds of victory. The S&P 500 looks overpriced and has a reasonable chance of disappointing passive in- vestors. Hedge funds miti- gate risk in bear markets, while seeking to participate in some of a bull market. In- vesting in hedge funds is a bet against continuing bull markets; investing in the S&P 500 is a bet on a con- tinuing bull market. A passive investment in the S&P 500 isn’t a sure thing, and that uncertainty creates the rationale for port- folio diversification. Fees will always matter, but market risk sometimes matters more. Seides is the managing partner for Hidden Brook Investments LLC. He formerly served as president and co-chief investment officer for Protege Partners LLC. He is the author of ‘So You Want to Start a Hedge Fund’ and host of the Capital Allocators podcast. © 2017, Bloomberg View5 LOCAL NEWS CAYMAN COMPASS • THURSDAY MAY 4, 2017 Located off Shamrock Road, only a few lots remain in this new subdivision. • Special Offer: Developer Pays Stamp Duty • 10,000 sft lots • Very high land 15+ feet above sea level • Great location CI$65,000 for first time Caymanian buyers Call or Whatsapp Josephine for full plans & details. 926-6102 CI$70,000 House Lots For Sale 100% Financing from select banks - ends July 2017 Hurricane exercise: ‘Practice is always good’ SPENCER FORDIN sfordin@pinnaclemedialtd.com Call it the plan before the storm. Various agencies of the Cayman Islands government came together Wednesday to conduct the annual hurricane exercise, a drill to ensure that everybody is prepared for their role in confronting a major storm. Hazard Management Cayman Islands led an all- day exercise in crisis assess- ment in the National Emer- gency Operations Centre, and repair crews from the Public Works Department and Na- tional Roads Authority raced around Grand Cayman to simulate preparing buildings for a potential storm. The group in the Na- tional Emergency Opera- tions Centre worked on 130 scenarios prepared by Kerry Powery, the chief meteorolo- gist for the Cayman Islands National Weather Service. Mr. Powery said the goal was to examine the government’s preparation for each different type of storm. “For us, it’s almost a con- stant thing. Practice is al- ways good,” he said. “There’s always some wrinkle that might come up, some unex- pected situation that makes you think outside the box. Our biggest problem might be perhaps that we’re under- staffed. We could be a little short-handed, so we have to practice what we need to do to get the job done. The job is number one, so we make the sacrifices we need to make sure the rest of the islands have the informa- tion they need.” The table-top conference brought various branches of government and attempted to coordinate their roles in the event of a storm. Four major groups – support ser- vices, emergency response, human concerns and infra- structure – broke apart to hammer out their individual responsibilities. Danielle Coleman, deputy director of preparedness and planning for Hazard Manage- ment Cayman Islands, said a major focus is streamlining information and making sure everyone is on the same page. Thanks to technology, she said, it’s much easier to work out a reasonable plan of action. “All these stakeholders would be part of the national response,” said Ms. Coleman. “It’s basically getting ev- eryone to make sure we’re all speaking the same lan- guage and that we all under- stand what each other’s roles are in the event. We only do this once a year, so we need to make sure we’re up to date with modern technologies and we know what the plan is. We have to each know what our part of the puzzle is and what everybody else is doing so we can respond the way we need to.” While that was going on, several groups of workers were spreading out all over the island to make sure they are able to shutter var- ious buildings in the event of a storm. More than 150 workers were involved in assessing the various life- saving measures at over 100 buildings and 16 desig- nated shelters. Levi Allen, an inspector for the Public Works Depart- ment, said each building is examined to make sure that its electrical, mechanical and plumbing systems are in full working order. “These are government buildings and government fa- cilities,” said Mr. Allen of the inspection process. “Those that need to be shuttered are shuttered. Those that have hurricane rated windows are inspected. In addition to that, and most importantly, 16 shelters on Grand Cayman are shuttered and inspected annually to ensure that these buildings are able to protect citizens that require shelters.” Mr. Allen said the na- tional hurricane shelters can accommodate about 5,000 people – or 10 percent of the population of Grand Cayman – in the event of a major storm. He said the workers also drill on making their necessary repairs quickly so they can go home and get their own houses in order. The Cayman Islands has been conducting these exer- cises for nearly 30 years, and the workers are getting better and more efficient each time they do it, he said. “The first exercise was in 1988, and at that time it took three to four days to com- plete the entire island,” said Mr. Allen. “Right after, there was a hurricane, so it helped in the preparations. Now, in 2017, it takes us about six hours to do over 100 build- ings and 16 shelters. Each year, we try to go quicker, but with safety in mind. We’ve never had any major inci- dents, knock on wood, and we never intend to.” Arek Gardner, an assis- tant project manager with the Public Works Department who has been a building in- spector for the last six years, said the process is getting better each time they do it. “My job is to just tag along with the guys and make sure all the shutters are installed correctly, removed correctly and stored back correctly,” he said of the drill. “We’ve been doing it in record times. Year to year, we used to have a prize for the quickest time, but throughout the Carib- bean, we’re one of the best when it comes to hurricane preparedness in terms of get- ting the buildings secured.” The crews on the ground and the groups in the con- ference room are working to ensure the same thing: That Cayman is fortified to deal with any contingency from a storm. Communication is key, so the people seeing the conditions on the ground can relay that information back to the planning center. Mr. Powery said the Na- tional Weather Service co- ordinates with the hurri- cane center in Miami to get the best projection informa- tion and to prepare for each scenario. And after each an- nual test of the system, the groups know better how to confront each of their re- spective tasks. “Because the island is small, the consideration for evacuation is problematic,” he said. “We’re a tourist base, so we try to get the word out to the tourists. If they want to leave, they make accom- modations for that. For the locals, just ride it out, and we try to give them the best in- formation we can.” “There’s alwa ys some wrinkle that might come up, some unexpected situation that makes you think outside the box.” KERRY POWERY, chief meteorologist, Cayman Islands National Weather Service Workers pull shut the accordion storm shutters at John Gray High School. - PHOTOS: SPENCER FORDIN More than 100 buildings were attended to in the exercise. - PHOTO: JEWEL LEVY Workers prepare the base of a hallway at John Gray High School for storm shutters.The islands’ most-trusted news source 6 Community CALENDAR ■ COMMUNITY CALENDAR is published TUESDAYS and THURSDAYS. It is available to charitable or nonprofit organizations. Items should be submitted at least three working days before publication. Information must include name of sender, signature and contact number. ■ Items may be faxed to 949-2662, brought to the Cayman Compass office on Shedden Rd. or emailed to cwinker@pinnaclemedialtd.com at least three days in advance of publication. THURSDAY MAY 4, 2017 • CAYMAN COMPASS POLITICAL MEETINGS AND FORUMS THURSDAY, MAY 4 CHAMBER FORUM: West Bay North candidates, 7-9 p.m., West Bay Assembly of God, Finch Drive. FRIDAY, MAY 5 CHAMBER FORUM: Newlands candidates, 7-9 p.m., Savannah Primary School. MONDAY, MAY 8 CHAMBER FORUM: George Town East candidates, 7-9 p.m. First Baptist Church Hall. JOHANY (JAY) EBANKS: North Side. Chisholm’s Supermarket. 7:30 p.m. ARDEN MCLEAN: East End. Anthony Frederick’s yard, John McLean Drive. 8 p.m. TUESDAY, MAY 9 CHAMBER FORUM: George Town North candidates, 7-9 p.m. Arts and Recreation Centre, Camana Bay. EZZARD MILLER: North Side. Stepping Stones. 8 p.m. WEDNESDAY, MAY 10 NATIONAL DEBATE: Candidates from various districts at Arts and Recreation Centre, Camana Bay. 7-9 p.m. THURSDAY, MAY 11 CHAMBER FORUM: George Town Central candidates, 7-9 p.m. George Town Town Hall. TUESDAY, MAY 16 NATIONAL DEBATE: Candidates from various districts at Arts and Recreation Centre, Camana Bay. 7-9 p.m. ARDEN MCLEAN: East End. Pamela Dixon’s yard, Sea View Road. 8 p.m. EZZARD MILLER: North Side. Joyce Douglas’ yard. 8 p.m. WEDNESDAY, MAY 17 JOHANY (JAY) EBANKS: North Side. Rosita (Bina) Brown’s yard, Frank Sound. 7:30 p.m. THURSDAY, MAY 18 NATIONAL DEBATE: Candidates from various districts at Arts and Recreation Centre, Camana Bay. 7-9 p.m. THURSDAY, MAY 4 CHILDREN’S FESTIVAL: The National Children’s Festival of the Arts final concert takes place this evening at the Family Life Centre off Walkers Road, starting at 6:30 p.m. Entrance fee is $5 for adults, $2 for children. Doors open at 6 p.m. FRIDAY, MAY 5 PIRATES WANTED: The public is invited to register to be a part of the Pirates Takeover at Cayman Carnival Batabano 2017. Be a part of the all-inclusive T-shirt and costume mas band which aims to remind spectators that as Carnival in Cayman is winding down, the road to Pirates Week is just gearing up. Deadline to register is today. For more information on the complete package email info@piratesweekfestival. com or call 949-5859. SUNDAY, MAY 7 SERVICE FOR CANDIDATES: Service for all candidates in the May 24 elections. 6 p.m. Elmslie Memorial Church. This is an ecumenical service that includes the United Church in Jamaica and the Cayman Islands and the Cayman Ministers Association. All candidates are invited to attend. MONDAY, MAY 8 ASTRONOMICAL SOCIETY: Annual general meeting at 7 p.m. at the William Hrudey Observatory at the North End of the UCCI Campus, 168 Olympic Way (turn left at the main entrance into UCCI). Call Richard, 925-4917 for more details. WEDNESDAY, MAY 10 BOOKENDS CLUB: Books & Books, Camana Bay, 6:30-7:30 p.m. Members meet to review their latest pick, “Japanese Lover” by Isabel Allende. All are invited to share insights and impressions in an open discussion. The Bookends Club gathers on the second Wednesday of every month and new members are always welcome. FRIDAY, MAY 12 POSTAL VOTING: The Elections Office reminds registered voters that the period during which they may request postal ballots or mobile voting will continue until close of business today. People who will be away from Cayman on Election Day may request a postal ballot by filling out Form B, available on www. elections.ky, at portal. elections.ky/files/downloads/ forms/2016/FORMB.pdf. The completed form and proof of travel may be emailed to office@elections.ky. SATURDAY, MAY 13 TEA PARTY: The Mothers Union of the St. George’s Anglican Church hosts its annual tea party, A Spring Affair from 3 p.m. in the Church Hall. Tickets are adults $10, children under 10, $5.00. There will be prizes, surprises and entertainment for the whole family. The event is in aid of community outreach projects hosted by the Mothers Union. Call or text 325-0318 for tickets. RUM TAILS: Dog show and demonstrations, organized by One Dog at a Time. 1–4 p.m. at the distillery on Bronze Road, next to Animal House in George Town. Entry forms for the show are available from Cayman Animal Hospital or at the event. The dog show begins at 2:30 p.m., with categories including best rescue, best costume, best trick and more. There will be rum tasting tours, hot food, cakes and drinks for purchase, and an agility course. Dog shampoo and conditioner treatment for $10. THURSDAY, MAY 18 ARDYTH SMITH IN BLACK AND WHITE: The National Museum on Harbour Drive launches the Ardyth Smith exhibition. The event is free and open to the public. Miss Ardyth was an animal rights activist, community leader, historian, advocate for people’s rights and photographer. SUNDAY, MAY 21 THE BUSINESS OF ART: Presentations and workshops that explore how artists and creatives can build a business around their talent, from initially developing a presence in the art world through to learning to sell your work directly to the public or finding suitable representation. 8:45 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Regular attendance, $35. Practicing artist, CI$25. Students over 15 years, free. Lunch and refreshments will be provided throughout. Booking is essential. Email events@nationalgallery.org.ky or call 945-8111. CIMA CHARITY 5K & 10K WALK/RUN: As part of the Cayman Islands Monetary Authority’s 20th anniversary, the public is invited to the 5K & 10K Walk/Run, 6 a.m., starting at Elizabethan Square. Cost is $20 for adults, $10 for children under 12. Proceeds benefit the literacy and numeracy programs of various government primary schools. To register, or for more information, visit www.cima.ky. GENERAL INTEREST VOTER ID CARDS: The Elections Office is issuing new voter registration cards. Cards may be collected from the Elections Office at the Smith Road Centre, 150 Smith Road, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays. The new cards will replace all previously issued voter identification. Officials will stop issuing cards on Friday, May 19. To receive a card, people must show a valid form of official identification, such as a driver’s license, passport or work ID. Those with questions should contact 949-8047, office@elections.ky or www.elections.ky. MOBILE VOTING: Voters who will be in Cayman, but unable to physically attend the polls, may apply for mobile voting using Form C, available from www.elections.ky at portal. elections.ky/files/downloads/ forms/2016/FORMC.pdf. Elections Office polling staff will either visit successful applicants in person, or facilitate their vote before polling day at an early voting station. ADULT ACTING CLASSES: Offered through the Cayman Drama Society. May 7, method acting. June 4, the actor’s voice. $40 per class. Contact training@cds.ky. LOST DOGS: The Department of Agriculture and veterinary students of St. Matthew’s University provide an online list of dogs housed at the Department of Agriculture Animal Rescue Shelter in Lower Valley. Anyone missing a dog can check www.smustudents.webs.com. HUMANE SOCIETY BOOK LOFT: North Sound Road. Open Monday 12:30-4 p.m.; Tuesday through Friday 9 a.m.-4 p.m.; Saturday 9 a.m.-5 p.m.; Thursday 5:30-7:30 p.m. Volunteers needed for front desk a few hours per week. Email humanesocietybookloft@ candw.ky or call 946-8053. Donations of books, games, CDs, stationery, DVDs, cards etc., in good condition always needed. RED CROSS THRIFT SHOP: The Thrift Shop opening hours are Tuesday to Thursday, 9 a.m.-2 p.m. and 5-7 p.m. Friday hours are 9 a.m.-2 p.m. and closed evenings. Saturday 7:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m. SPECIAL OLYMPICS: Volunteers are needed. Tuesdays at the Truman Bodden Complex at 5:30 p.m. for track/field, football and bocce. No experience necessary, just a smile and patience. Wednesdays at Lions Pool 10:15–11 a.m. You do not have to swim, just be able to walk in water chest-deep. Thursdays at First Baptist Church for basketball, 5:30–7 p.m. Saturdays, volunteers needed for Adult Special Olympic swim conditioning at CIS pool 9:30–10:30 a.m. Deck support and in-water swimming assistance needed. For more information, contact Penny McDowall at 516-2578 or pjmcdowall@gmail.com. OPEN STUDIO: Every Thursday 10 a.m. till noon and every Monday 1-4 p.m. at Watler House Studio on grounds of Pedro Castle. Offered by Visual Arts Society to adults/youth who want to work independently in an inspiring atmosphere. Contact info@visualartcayman.com. COMMUNITY CHESS: Tuesdays 5-8 p.m., West Indies Wine Company. Join the Cayman Chess Club for a complimentary chess class and open challenges weekly. Anyone can learn to play and enjoy chess, even beginners. BETHESDA COUNSELLING CENTRE: Caters to all who seek help. Open Monday to Friday 9:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. at 68 Mary St. Appointments available Saturdays and late evenings. Center is owned and operated by the United Church in Jamaica and the Cayman Islands. Call 946-6575. ARTISANS MARKET: Camana Bay every Wednesday, noon till 8 p.m. Visual Arts Society artists display arts, crafts, paintings, prints, hand-crafted jewelry and ceramics for sale. Email info@visualartcayman.com. OPEN CANVAS: Wednesdays. Visual Arts Society supports this event at KARoo Restaurant in Camana Bay. 7-11 p.m. No fee, easels provided. Contact info@ongart.com or jar.was@gmail.com. MUSEUM TOURS: The National Museum provides guided tours for students and school groups free of cost. Students will gain an understanding of Cayman’s geological formation, flora and fauna, seafaring and rope-making heritage, political history and more. Contact the museum to book a tour in advance at 949-8368 or email info@museum.ky. CLUBS, ORGANIZATIONS ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS: Meets daily to help with drinking problems. For more information, call 926-9044 or visit www.caymanaa.org. NARCOTICS ANONYMOUS: Is available for substance abuse help. Call the info line at 929–NANA (6262). AL-ANON GROUP MEETING: Are you troubled by someone’s drinking? Al-Anon Family Groups can help. Call 928-8843 or email caymanalanon@gmail.com for meeting times. OVERCOMERS OUTREACH: A Christ-centered 12-Step Recovery Group addresses addictions and those affected by them. Meetings at Cayman Islands Baptist Church, Pedro Castle Road, Mondays, 7 p.m. For details, contact Virginia Castillo at 946-2422, or visit www.overcomersoutreach.org. DEMENTIA/ALZHEIMER’S SUPPORT GROUP: This group meets on the last Wednesday of each month at the Catboat Club clubhouse, North Church Street. All are invited to attend. For more information, call 924-4170 or email info@adacayman.com. For more Community Calendar events, visit www.caymancompass.com/events.DISTRICT DAYS 7 District Days Bodden Town CAYMAN COMPASS • THURSDAY MAY 4, 2017 Informing public of spay and neuter programs A group of Year 6 students at Savannah Primary School took on the issue of homeless pets in their International Baccalaureate Primary Years Programme awareness exhi- bition with the help of local animal rescue charity CARE. The school’s coordinator for the program, Jessica Eden, noted the exhibition on April 12 had students ex- ploring how their passion can drive them toward great accomplishment. With the as- sistance and guidance of Ms. Eden, teachers and mentors worked with the students to gather information and per- form an action geared to- ward changes, with positive impact on all. The Year 6 Erskine stu- dents Aaliyannah Anderson, Danae Wilson, Kayleigh Push, Analeah Parker, Durean Thompson and Elizabeth Walton-Pineda, with the as- sistance and guidance of their teacher Nesa Pena, looked into animal homelessness for their presentation. The group joined fellow Year 6 stu- dents presenting on a wide range of topics, such as drug awareness and other com- munity issues. For their project, the group reached out to the kidsCARE team, CARE’s stu- dent-focused program, for in- formation on their subject. “We were also invited to attend the awareness day, which was a great honor for us,” said kidsCARE coordi- nator Kiralee Harnett, who noted that Abby the dog also came along to represent the organization’s “fur talent.” Students and teachers from John A. Cumber Pri- mary School, Prospect Pri- mary School, MLAs from the district of Bodden Town, representatives from the Ministry and Department of Education, parents and family members all attended the exhibition. After making their pre- sentation, the students went to Countryside Shopping Vil- lage in Savannah to hand out fliers with information about spay and neuter programs and spoke with shoppers about how important it is to spay and neuter pets. 50 YEARS AGO: SPENCER BODDEN SETS OFF TO SEA In the May 3, 1967 edi- tion of the Caymanian Weekly, a precursor of the Cayman Compass, Bodden Town correspondent Floris McCoy wrote: “Leaving on Monday to spend a few months in the USA was Miss Victorine Berry. “Mr. Spencer Bodden, one of our promising young men and a fine Sunday School attendee, left Bodden Town this week to become an employee of National Bulk Carriers. We wish for Spencer a very good year. “Mrs. Selkirk Watler and little son left for New Jersey. “Mr. Anton Bodden, MLA of this district, who attended the funeral of the late Prime Minister of Jamaica, Sir Donald Sangster, re- turned home on April 20. Mr. Bodden feels very fortunate to have had the opportunity of attending such a great state funeral. He was very impressed with the kind- ness and hospitality shown to him and he met and saw many other foreign repre- sentatives and dignitaries. He was pleased to have rep- resented Grand Cayman. “Mrs. Willie Wood is in Cayman Brac for two weeks visiting her son, Mr. Hart- well Wood, a teacher there. “Mr. Ransford Terry left for Jamaica.” Virtual walk-through of Mission House offered The National Trust is turning to technology to offer a new way of experi- encing Bodden Town’s his- toric Mission House. According to a press re- lease, the Trust has launched a new online feature which provides a virtual walk- through of the property. “The virtual walk- through consists of a set of high resolution, 360-de- gree panoramic images that users can fully control with their mouse, trackpad or finger,” the release states, noting this new feature was made possible with support from IRG – International Realty Group. “It can also be down- loaded for use on Google Cardboard goggles or the Samsung Gear VR headsets. This allows visitors to move around any of the rooms in the Mission House and of- fers a glimpse of the tra- ditional building styles, materials and furniture con- tained within this beauti- fully restored property.” The Trust states that it is hoped that the new fea- ture will complement the National Trust’s guided tours of the Mission House. They are available Monday through Friday and take visitors back to an earlier time in Cayman, telling the many stories of the fam- ilies who resided there and showcasing artifacts from their lives. Tours can be reserved by contacting the National Trust at info@nationaltrust.org.ky or by calling 749-1121. THE STUDENTS WROTE AND READ THE FOLLOWING POEM FOR THE PRESENTATION: Let’s adopt an animal. It’s not hard. Let’s play with our new friend. In our yard. Let’s give them a new beginning. A fresh start. Adopt an animal. Have a heart. Let’s show our animals. Some love and care. All of our love. Come on let’s share. Animals need homes. Have a new attitude. Let’s spay and neuter our animals. Don’t be rude! Animals will be happy. At the end of the day. Then we can all jump and say. Hurray! Analeah Parker speaks to a customer at Countryside Shopping Village in Savannah. A new virtual walk-through of the Mission House is now available. Savannah students tackle pet careThe islands’ most-trusted news source 8 THURSDAY MAY 4, 2017 • CAYMAN COMPASS Parrotfish study under way in Cayman JAMES WHITTAKER jwhittaker@pinnaclemedialtd.com A $650,000 three-year study to help determine which fish are most important to the health and survival of coral reefs has been launched in the Cayman Islands. The research project will examine the prevalence and importance of different types of herbivorous fish, like col- orful parrotfish and damsel- fish which help remove algae from Cayman’s coral reefs. It is hoped that the study, a partnership between the Central Caribbean Marine In- stitute, the Cayman Islands Department of Environment and the Smithsonian Institu- tion, will help policymakers better manage marine re- sources around the world. The Darwin Plus initiative, which supports U.K. Over- seas Territories to conserve areas rich in biodiversity, has granted CCMI and their project partners 249,096 pounds (CI$263,000), the largest award in CCMI’s history. CCMI has contributed 375,746 pounds (CI$398,000) from private funding to fully develop the project. Scientists started work last month, diving at 15 sites, that will include all three islands, to measure the bio- logical diversity of fish, coral and algae populations. According to a statement from the research center, “This is also the first time CCMI has conducted a regional expedi- tion since their initial survey in 1999 and this project will build on that historical data, providing a 20-year perspec- tive on how the reef popula- tions have changed over time and across the country.” The project, developed by Courtney Cox of the Smithsonian Institution, Carrie Manfrino and Alli Candelmo of CCMI, and John Bothwell of the DoE, seeks to understand which fish are key to maintaining coral reef health and will result in “rec- ommendations for strategic biodiversity planning,” ac- cording to the statement. It added, “Examining bio- diversity across the islands and measuring the influ- ence different fish species have on the overall state of the reefs will help the re- searchers identify the contri- butions different herbivores make to maintaining reef ecosystem balance.” Ms. Manfrino, president of CCMI, said she has high hopes for the project. “What is significant about this project is the role of the multiple partners – we all bring a different set of skills to the table, so we fully le- verage the funds available to the project. We are pleased to be supported by the Smith- sonian Institution and the Cayman Islands Department of Environment as collabo- rators as we seek to produce project results that can pro- vide meaningful recommen- dations to protect the coral reefs in the Cayman Islands for the future.” “What is significant about this project is the role of the multiple partners – we all bring a different set of skills to the table, so we fully leverage the funds available to the project.” CARRIE MANFRINO, president, Central Caribbean Marine Institute police officer came upon the vehicle collision. There was no police pursuit.” Mr. Owens said the of- ficer decided to follow the car because it was traveling at excessive speed. He said along with the two passen- gers in the Honda’s trunk, the vehicle was also carrying “several conchs.” The force of the crash killed the three visitors and the 22-year-old Honda driver. The 26-year-old passenger and the 11-year-old boy were rushed to the Cayman Is- lands Hospital. The adult male passenger remained in critical condi- tion Wednesday and was un- conscious, according to Mr. Owens. The child was con- scious and appeared to be making a recovery, according to hospital doctors. Dozens of family mem- bers and friends gathered around the ambulance bay of the Cayman Islands Hos- pital’s emergency room late Tuesday, waiting for news about the accident victims. “Everyone is in shock,” said Kadisha McFarlane, one of those gathered outside the hospital. “It’s just very devastating.” She asked that everyone in the Cayman Islands keep the victims in their prayers. Health Services Authority Chief Executive Officer Liz- zette Yearwood and Acting Medical Director Courtney Cummings were outside the hospital speaking to the vic- tims’ families Tuesday night. Dr. Cummings said the hos- pital took about 15 family members into the emergency room to explain what hap- pened. A few close relatives were allowed in to see the body of the deceased, but Dr. Cummings said officials told them a post-mortem was yet to be done and was a matter under police investigation. “We answered all the questions they had for us,” Dr. Cummings said. “It was a large crowd and we needed all hands on deck.” Police Commissioner Byrne and Acting Cayman Islands Governor Franz Manderson met Wednesday to discuss the issues sur- rounding the crash, in- cluding the notification of the consulates of Jamaica and the U.K. Mr. Manderson said the news of Tuesday night’s fatal wreck left him with “great sadness.” “On behalf of the Cayman Islands government, I would like to express our condo- lences to the families of those who lost loved ones,” Mr. Manderson said. “I would also like to ex- press my appreciation for the response provided by the emergency services and medical personnel who played a part in this dis- tressing incident.” Chief Inspector Owens said he could not recall so many deaths resulting from an accident in the Cayman Islands in the past 20 years. debt and the Highways and Transportation Authority has around $7 billion of debt. A federal district court judge will now be in charge of the restructuring. Bond- holders cannot challenge Rossello’s decision until 120 days from now. Elias Sanchez, the gover- nor’s representative to the board, criticized creditors for filing lawsuits even as the governor continued to hold what he called good-faith ne- gotiations after a litigation freeze expired after May 1. “When a line is crossed, the government has to act in favor of the people of Puerto Rico.” Several groups rep- resenting bondholders did not immediately return re- quests for comment. In the next couple of days, the chief justice of the U.S. Supreme Court is expected to appoint a federal district court judge to oversee Puerto Rico’s case, he said. Mean- while, the government will continue to talk to creditors and seek a stay on the nearly two dozen lawsuits that the U.S. territory faces. Sanchez noted that unlike a regular bankruptcy in the U.S. mainland, a judge cannot unilaterally seize any of Puerto Rico’s assets and turn them over to bondholders. “The courts cannot say, ‘We’re going to give you the Puerto Rico coliseum, or these prop- erties from the Land Au- thority,” he said. “They just cannot do that without the consent of the board.” Puerto Rico is facing $70 billion in debt. By compar- ison, the U.S. city of Detroit had $9.3 billion of obligations when it filed for bankruptcy in 2013 in the biggest U.S. municipal bankruptcy ever. While Detroit’s case was resolved in a couple of years, it is unclear how long it will take for Puerto Rico. “This is much bigger and much more complex than De- troit,” Sanchez said, adding that he estimates the process could be completed within four years. The announce- ment has sparked wide- spread uncertainty on the island, where Puerto Ricans are struggling with increases in taxes, higher utility rates and an unemployment rate that has hovered around 12 percent. The crisis has prompted nearly 450,000 Puerto Ricans to leave the is- land for the U.S. mainland in the past decade. It is too early to say what kind of impact a debt re- structuring in court will have on the 3.4 million people that remain on the island, econo- mist Jose Joaquin Villamil told The Associated Press. “(It) presents a very big risk for both parties,” he said, refer- ring to the government and to bondholders. “We don’t know what a federal district court judge is going to decide.” However, he warned that the process will further spook the type of investors that Puerto Rico’s economy needs as it prepares to imple- ment several austerity mea- sures. Sanchez disputed that opinion, saying that a court- supervised restructuring would actually provide more comfort to investors. Puerto Rico announces historic bankruptcy-type process CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 Family members and friends of the local car crash victims speak with hospital officials Tuesday night outside the Cayman Islands Hospital emergency room. – PHOTO: BRENT FULLER Four die in ‘horrific’ East End crash; adult and child remain in hospital CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 A woman confronts police as thousands of Puerto Ricans protest upcoming austerity measures and demand an audit on the island’s debt, in San Juan on Monday. - PHOTO: AP/DANICA COTOThe islands’ most-trusted news source 9 CAYMAN COMPASS • THURSDAY MAY 4, 2017 All winners are asked to call 925-4337 to collect their prizes. A photo ID and the ticket is required to claim prizes. All Stars Spring Raffle All Stars Netball Club would like to thank the following persons for their assistance in making the Spring Raffle possible. - Fosters Food Fair - Price Right - Club Members – Current and Past - Jackie Morgan - The Cayman Islands Community Prize Winners First – Fitzroy Clarke - 0793 Second – George Thomas - 0186 Third – Keswight Wright - 0094 Israel to withhold $1M in UN funding Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says he will withhold $1 million in payments to the United Nations following a resolution adopted by its cultural agency that he says diminishes Jewish ties to Jerusalem. Netanyahu called the UNESCO resolution ‘absurd.’ British leader accuses EU officials of election interference BRUSSELS (AP) – British Prime Minister Theresa May on Wednesday accused Euro- pean Union officials of trying to influence the U.K. elections, ratcheting up tensions with Brussels over her country’s departure from the bloc. Just hours after the EU unveiled its plan for Brexit talks, which delays discus- sion on issues like trade that are so dear to Britain, May said “the European Commis- sion’s negotiating stance has hardened. Threats against Britain have been issued by European politicians and officials.” “All of these acts have been deliberately timed to affect the result of the gen- eral election that will take place on June 8,” she told re- porters outside 10 Downing Street, in a speech aimed at rallying support for her Con- servative Party ahead of next month’s polls. May’s comments follow leaked comments in the British and European press suggesting the EU thinks Britain is not facing reality about the conditions of its EU exit and the complexity of the negotiations ahead. “The events of the last few days have shown that – what- ever our wishes, and however reasonable the positions of Europe’s other leaders – there are some in Brussels who do not want these talks to suc- ceed,” she said. The head of the EU’s ex- ecutive Commission, Jean- Claude Juncker, expressed regret that details of his pri- vate dinner with May last week had made the news. A German news re- port said that Juncker left the meeting saying he was “10 times more skep- tical than I was before” that negotiations will succeed. May dismissed the report as “Brussels gossip.” May also vowed Tuesday to be a “bloody difficult woman” in Brexit talks. Juncker said: “I have noted that she is a tough lady.” Earlier, the EU’s chief Brexit negotiator Michel Bar- nier insisted that Britain’s ac- counts must be settled before any talks on its future trade relationship with the EU can take place, as he warned that time is running out to seal a deal by 2019. Unveiling the Commis- sion’s negotiating mandate for Britain’s departure, Bar- nier said he was not hostile to Britain and the bloc did not want to punish it for leaving – but “we have to settle the ac- count, not more not less.” The amount London owes the EU has become one of the most contentious subjects in the Brexit process, with some reports estimating it could climb to as much as 100 bil- lion euros ($109 billion) – a figure that Britain has flatly rejected paying. U.K. Brexit Secretary David Davis told ITV that Britain “will meet our international obligations,” but added: “We will not be paying 100 billion.” Davis also dismissed re- ports the EU could bar May from Brexit discussions at future heads of state and government meetings. This is the first time a member has ever left the EU, so these negotiations are taking the Europeans into uncharted waters. The pro- cess is unprecedented and complicated, and combined with fresh delays caused by the snap elections in Britain, is raising tensions between London and the 27 nations that will remain in the EU. Barnier did not specify how much Britain should pay, but his negotiating man- date said it should cover budget payments, the cost of ending Britain’s member- ship of any EU institution in- cluding banks, and the bill for relocating any EU agen- cies on its territory. London must also pay in euros rather than pounds, meaning that it should bear the currency exchange costs. The European Parlia- ment’s Brexit point man, Guy Verhofstadt, also declined to go into numbers. He said the parties must first agree on the “accounting princi- ples” from which the bill will be determined. “We cannot ask to the 27 remaining members to pay the bill for the departure of a country,” he said. As in any divorce, he added, “you can’t just say ‘My partner will take all the burden.’” Money aside, the top pri- ority of the talks is how to handle the rights of some 3 million citizens from the 27 nations living in Britain and up to 2 million Britons re- siding on the continent. All face massive uncertainty on such issues as health bene- fits, pensions, taxes, employ- ment and education. Another key aim is to keep people and goods moving smoothly across the border between Northern Ireland, which is part of the U.K., and EU member Ireland. Under the negotiating mandate, EU states would have to approve progress on these and other immediate exit issues before Barnier can start negotiating the outline of the bloc’s future relations with Britain after it leaves. Some British politi- cians, including May, have said walking away would be better than a bad deal, and Barnier conceded that the EU has planned for such a contingency. “We are prepared for all options,” he said. “But the op- tion I am working on is get- ting an agreement.” N. KOREA CONFIRMS LATEST DETENTION OF AMERICAN CITIZEN SEOUL, South Korea (AP) – North Korea on Wednesday confirmed the detention of another American citizen for alleged acts of hostility aimed at overthrowing the country. Kim Sang Dok, an ac- counting instructor at Pyong- yang University of Science and Technology, was “inter- cepted” at Pyongyang Interna- tional Airport on April 22, ac- cording to the Korean Central News Agency. It said he was being detained while authori- ties conduct a detailed inves- tigation into his alleged crime. The school’s chancellor Park Chan-mo and the Swedish Embassy in Pyong- yang earlier gave the infor- mation about Kim’s deten- tion but could not provide the reason for his arrest. The school’s report used a different spelling of Kim’s name, Kim Sang-duk. Kim’s English name is Tony Kim. He is now the third Amer- ican being detained in North Korea. The other U.S. de- tainees are Otto Warmbier, serving a 15-year prison term with hard labor for al- leged anti-state acts, and Kim Dong Chul, serving a 10-year term with hard labor for al- leged espionage. Analysts say North Korea often attempts to use foreign detainees to wrest outside concessions, which in the past have sometimes involved high- profile American missions sent to secure the release of detainees. Animosity between Pyongyang and Washington has spiked in recent weeks amid a game of brinkmanship between North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and U.S. Presi- dent Donald Trump. Park said Kim, who is 58, was detained as he was trying to leave the country from Pyongyang’s inter- national airport. A univer- sity spokesman said he was trying to leave with his wife on a flight to China. Park said he was informed that the de- tention had “nothing to do” with Kim’s work at the uni- versity but did not know further details. The U.S. State Depart- ment said last month that it was aware of the report about a U.S. citizen being detained, but declined fur- ther comment “due to privacy considerations.” The Pyongyang Univer- sity of Science and Tech- nology is the only privately funded university in North Korea. It held its first classes in 2010. It is unique in the North for its large number of foreign staff. Kim Sang Dok, an accounting instructor at Pyongyang University of Science and Technology, was “intercepted” at Pyongyang International Airport on April 22, according to the Korean Central News Agency. “All of these acts have been deliberately timed to affect the result of the general election that will take place on June 8.” PRIME MINISTER THERESA MAY Prime Minister Theresa MayNext >