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More ATMs. More smiles. cayman compass Your most trusted news source Established 1965 75 CENTS | Funding local journalism | Wednesday, 29 January 2020 Opinion Governor Roper on Brexit impact Page 4 News New $1 bill in circulation Page 5 7.7 magnitude earthquake rocks Cayman Pages 2 and 3Matinees (matinee price before 6pm) • Seniors $8.00 (Mon-Fri before 6pm) Additional charges apply per 3D/VIP tickets 640-FILM (640-3456) Cayman Cinema@cbcinema6cbcinema6 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. 1917 (R) 1:00 VIP | 3:50 | 7:00 | 10:00 BAD BOYS FOR LIFE (R) 12:40 | 3:55 VIP | 7:05 | 9:55 VIP DOLITTLE (PG) 1:15 | 4:00 | 6:35 | 9:10 JO JO RABBIT (PG13) 1:30 | 4:15 | 6:55 | 10:00 PANGA (PG) 3:50 | 9:40 JUST MERCY (PG13) 12:45 | 6:50 THE TURNING (PG13) 12:30 | 2:55 | 5:15 | 7:35 | 10:05 WHAT’S PLAYING THIS WEEK WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 29 PRINTED AND PUBLISHED BY: Cayman Compass Ltd. Compass Centre, Shedden Road, George Town, Cayman Islands SEND US YOUR VIEWS OR NEWS: P.O. Box 1365 Grand Cayman, KY1-1108 Cayman Islands Telephone: (345) 815-0095 Email: newsdesk@compassmedia.ky ADVERTISE WITH US: T: (345) 949-5111 E: sales@compassmedia.ky W: caymancompass.com PUBLISHER KATHLEEN CAPETTA EDITOR-IN-CHIEF KEVIN MORALES Fair skies with less than 20% chance of showers. weather Forecast today Cayman Islands 84°F 74°F HIGH LOW WINDS South to southwest 5 knots or less. SEA STATE Smooth to slight with wave heights less than 2 feet. FIND US ONLINE Caymancompass.com Facebook.com/Caycompass cayman_compass@cayCompassCayman Compass Alcohol bottles were knocked from shelves at liquor stores during the two-minute quake. HMCI: “small tsunami wave” recorded in GT harbour area The Cayman Islands and the northern Caribbean were struck by a magnitude 7.7 earthquake on Tuesday afternoon. The quake, which originated at a depth of 10km (6 miles), was felt in Cayman, Jamaica and Cuba, according to the United States Geological Survey. The tremor, which occurred around 2:10pm and lasted about two minutes, sent office workers scrambling from their buildings into open spaces. Several sinkholes opened up at various points around Grand Cayman, causing damage to vehicles and at least one property. Several aftershocks occurred in the hours following the initial quake. The first, registering at 4.7 magnitude, was felt just after 4pm and residents were warned to be on alert for further possible impacts. USGS reported that the aftershock occurred 30km (16 miles) southeast of East End. Another was felt just before 5pm, measuring 6.5 magnitude. By 6pm, there had been a total of eight aftershocks, according to USGS, although most were not felt by those in Cayman. A tsunami threat message was briefly issued through the US National Weather Service, and police and government issued warnings to residents to steer clear of the coast. A ‘small tsunami’ wave measuring 1.5 feet was recorded in the George Town harbour, according to Hazard Management Cayman Islands’ Simon Boxall. Premier Alden McLaughlin appeared on government television in an emergency broadcast around 4:30pm to confirm that no one had been injured in the incident. “I know people are very concerned and alarmed and there has been some structural damage, including at my own house,” he said. “It is with a deep sense of gratitude that I say it doesn’t appear as if anyone has been hurt and we have been spared the worst of what could have been a truly devastating ordeal.” Owen Roberts International Airport was evacuated immediately after the initial quake and patients at the Cayman Islands Hospital were moved to the upper floors amid fears of a tsunami. A statement released by the Cayman Islands Airports Authority at about 6pm confirmed there was no damage to either Owen Roberts or Charles Kirkconnell International Airports. No flights were affected. “Once the earthquake was over, as part of business continuity, all airport facilities were inspected for damage, including the runway, aprons and taxiways,” the CIAA said. “Once it was confirmed that there was no damage to the airport terminal, flight operations continued as normal.” Governor Martyn Roper, also speaking in a government television broadcast Tuesday afternoon, said, “I know it was a really scary event for all of us on the island. At this stage, there is a low risk of tsunami, but residents are advised to move to the second floor or higher as a precaution.” An all-clear from the threat of a tsunami was issued in a later broadcast. The governor indicated there had been some structural damage on both Cayman Brac and Grand Cayman. He said the Cayman Islands Fire Service and Public Works Department were responding to those incidents and the police helicopter was conducting aerial surveys of the island. He urged residents to keep an eye on the Hazard Management Cayman Islands Facebook page, as well as an ear on Radio Cayman for more updates. There was no evidence of any injuries or major damage. “A preliminary damage assessment is now under way and it has been confirmed that several sinkholes have opened up, and at least one property has been structurally damaged, but there have been no confirmed reports of injuries to persons in the Cayman Islands,” Hazard Management said in a statement just after 4pm. Police reported that sinkholes had opened up in a number of roads throughout Cayman, including several in the Windsor Park area; at Worthing Drive and Powell Smith Road in West Bay; Rum Point Road in North Side; and South Side Road West in Cayman Brac. At Cricket Square in George Town, small craters also opened up in the brick paving, and on Seven Mile Beach, several sinkholes of varying sizes appeared in the sand. Sewer pipes along West Bay Road erupted, sending sewage onto the streets. At least four cars were affected by sinkholes that appeared in the Cayman Islands Hospital car park on Smith Road. The area 7.7 magnitude earthquake rocks Cayman cayman compass 2 news N news WEDNESDAY, 29 JANUARY 2020was cordoned off by police and security personnel. Two large sinkholes, almost half the size of the vehicles, appeared beneath two cars. Elsewhere, items were thrown from the shelves of supermarkets and liquor stores, and residents observed wave action in condo swimming pools. All matters in the courthouse were stopped following the earthquake and jurors were sent home. Judges, attorneys, security staff, reporters and defendants clamoured out of the building as the floor swayed beneath their feet. Armed police who were at the courthouse on Tuesday, as added security for a home-invasion case, assisted prison officers to load defendants into prison vans and then escorted the fleet out. Traffic backed up immediately after the earthquake and throughout the afternoon, as people left work early. Several fender benders were reported on Grand Cayman’s gridlocked roads. Schools throughout Cayman were closed in the immediate aftermath of the quake. According to a Government Information Service press release, all government schools will remain closed on Wednesday while structural assessments of school buildings are carried out. It was business as usual at the port in George Town where there were no signs of any impact, according to Port Authority Acting Director Joey Woods. On Cayman Brac, the Aston Rutty Centre, which doubles as a hurricane shelter on the Bluff, opened around 2.30pm in preparation for a possible tsunami, and patients from Faith Hospital, along with 50 members of the public, went to the shelter, according to Lyndon Martin, of the Public Works Department. Though the threat of a tsunami generated significant anxiety on all three islands, reports from the US National Weather Service suggested that any wave impact would likely have hit within minutes of the initial earthquake. The bulletin listed the estimated time of arrival for any wave impact as 2:21pm on Cayman Brac and 2:37pm on Grand Cayman. John Tibbetts, director general of Cayman Islands National Weather Service, said Tuesday afternoon, “Given that those times have passed, and we do not have a report of a significant wave coming on shore, I would think that the tsunami threat from the initial wave has passed. “However, be reminded, a tsunami is a series of waves and there is also the possibility for further tremors that are likely to occur over the next six, eight, 12 hours.” Tim Austin, deputy director of the Department of Environment, said the George Town tide- monitoring system, which is part of the Caribbean tsunami warning network, registered some small waves on the recorder at the predicted time. Hazard Management advised that people check their homes for structural damage or other hazards, and added that the Red Cross shelter on Huldah Avenue in George Town would be open throughout Tuesday night for people who needed alternative accommodation overnight. The Aston Rutty Centre also remained open. Water services were interrupted in parts of Grand Cayman, due to damage to water pipes. Later on Tuesday, the Water Authority shut down its water distribution system to systematically check for leaks, caused by the earthquake. A section of the Health Services Authority carpark on Smith Road is cordoned off after sinkholes appeared following Tuesday's earthquake. Workers set up cots at the Aston Rutty Centre on the Bluff in Cayman Brac. This large sinkhole, and several others, appeared along Seven Mile Beach. cayman compass 3 news N news WEDNESDAY, 29 JANUARY 2020This is the first in a series of columns Governor Martyn Roper will be contributing to the Cayman Compass. It is three and half years since the UK voted in a referendum to leave the European Union. A period of uncertainty is behind us as Boris Johnson’s Conservative Party decisively won the UK election in December last year. With a strong mandate to ‘get Brexit done’, and the largest majority in Parliament since Mrs. Margaret Thatcher in 1987, the UK will leave the European Union on 31 Jan. 2020. Up until now, discussions around the UK’s exit have had little direct impact on the Cayman Islands. After 31 Jan., I do not expect that to change. The UK’s long-standing historical links and constitutional relationship with Cayman, and other Overseas Territories, is unaffected. Indeed, with a Conservative government and large majority in power for five, possibly 10 years, I expect stability and continuity in UK/ Cayman relations. The UK wants the closest possible links with our European partners. But under Global Britain, an outward-looking Britain – as a force for good in the world – will increasingly look beyond Europe. I believe that is an opportunity for Cayman and the Overseas Territories to develop an even stronger relationship with the UK in the future. On the impact of Brexit, people ask me about travelling to Europe, trade, financial services and EU financial support. On travel, there is no impact for British Overseas Territory Citizens (BOTCs) as their rights do not come from the UK’s membership of the EU. Those rights will not change as a direct result of Brexit. BOTC passport holders will still be able to visit EU countries visa-free for up to 90 days in any 180-day period. British Citizen passport holders will be able to continue to live, work and study in the EU throughout the implementation period, which runs to 31 Dec. 2020. European Union branding on British Citizen passports will not affect their validity after Brexit. There will be little trade impact on the Cayman Islands’ economy because the vast majority of Cayman’s imports come from outside the EU. 2020 is a transition year for trade links between UK and EU. Nothing changes until a new trade agreement is in place. I understand concerns that from February, the UK will no longer be around the EU table to speak on behalf of Cayman’s financial services industry. However, the UK will find other ways to represent Cayman’s interests, including bilateral lobbying of the European Commission through the UK Mission in Brussels and in EU capitals. As a highly sophisticated, financially self-sufficient and well-run British Overseas Territory, Cayman does not receive much EU financial support, apart from some environmental funding. Under the terms of the Withdrawal Agreement, EU-funded projects in the OTs will continue to be covered by the EU for their duration. So what are the opportunities for Cayman under Global Britain? I strongly support the premier’s vision in setting up the new Ministry of International Trade, Investment, Aviation and Maritime Affairs. My office is working closely with the new ministry. I very much hope the Cayman Islands government will take space at the UK Pavilion at Dubai Expo 2020 – a major international trade fair. It would put Cayman on a global stage in front of a huge audience of heads of government, business leaders, companies and celebrities, as well as the general public. The UK government has offered technical support for an international marketing campaign based on the UK’s highly successful GREAT campaign. This will showcase the wonderful biodiversity that Cayman has to offer and support our tourism and financial services sectors. As the UK leaves the European Union, there may be scope to develop closer links between the financial services industry and the City of London. Leaving the EU is a change of historic proportions for the UK. Lord Ahmad, UK Minister of State for the Overseas Territories, has asked me to assure you that the UK government is absolutely committed to supporting the security and prosperity of everyone on these Islands. The UK is heading into the next phase of the negotiations with the EU. As well as taking up the opportunities afforded by Brexit, including the ability to negotiate our own trade agreements around the world, the ongoing priority for UK Ministers is to continue to ensure that the voices of Cayman and the Overseas Territories are heard and that OTs’ priorities inform the government’s approach every step of the way. As governor, I will work closely with the premier and members of Cabinet to ensure our views are fully taken into account. YesterdaY's sOLUION 1234567 8 9 11 12 15 18 20 22 23 1234567 8 9 10 11 1213 14 151617 1819 20 21 22 23 Puzzle 16286 ACROSS: 1 Succumb, 4 Dated, 7 Butt, 8 Arkansas, 10 Right of way, 12 Cerise, 13 Sleazy, 15 Tremendous, 18 Fleeting, 19 Call, 20 Notch, 21 Sorcery. DOWN: 1 Sober, 2 Category, 3 Bereft, 4 Draw a blank, 5 Test, 6 Destiny, 9 At a stretch, 11 Sabotage, 12 Chiffon, 14 Amends, 16 Silly, 17 Deft. aCrOss 1 Alexandre Dumas hero (9) 8 Last of a series (5) 9 Experienced fighter (7) 10 Lyrical (6) 11 Doghouse (6) 12 Very quickly (2,1,5) 15 Privation (8) 18 Take away (6) 20 Save from danger (6) 21 Story with a moral (7) 22 Lowest point (5) 23 Alice’s host at Tea Party (3,6) dOWN 2 Proverb (5) 3 Despot (6) 4 Gruesome (8) 5 Fall asleep (3,3) 6 Uncommitted (7) 7 Guest at 23’s party (5,4) 11 Shakespeare’s shrew (9) 13 Draw nearer (8) 14 Vigorous campaign (7) 16 Wriggle (6) 17 Communicate (6) 19 Worth (5) The Compass Crossword Puzzle The Compass universal kakuro Puzzle 16287 The numbers in the black cells are clues. Numbers above the slash are across clues. Number below the slash are down clues. The goal is to enter digits 1 - 9 in the white cells to add up to the number clues. You cannot enter any digit more than once when adding up to clue. UK’s departure from the European Union Martyn Roper Governor cartoon Up until now, discussions around the UK’s exit have had little direct impact on the Cayman Islands. After 31 Jan., I do not expect that to change. cayman compass 4 news N news WEDNESDAY, 29 JANUARY 2020RESHMA RAGOONATH rragoonath@compassmedia.ky Circulation of a new commemorative $1 note is set to begin this week. The new note was announced by Premier Alden McLaughlin at Monday’s National Heroes’ Day celebrations in George Town, which honoured those who worked on Cayman’s first written Constitution, along with the continuing contributions of women to local politics. In 2018, Cayman commenced its Celebrate Cayman initiative to mark the 60th anniversaries of the Coat of Arms and the Constitution. The new note follows on those commemorations. “On Monday, we honoured our heroes and the men who saw the need for Cayman’s own written Constitution and took the necessary steps to get that document approved by the Queen,” McLaughlin said. “I think it is fitting that we have a banknote that commemorates their work and the Constitution, which is the foundation upon which our democracy is built and the ultimate embodiment of the rule of law in the Cayman Islands”. The note, which will be issued by the Cayman Islands Monetary Authority, is a modified version of the current ‘D’ series $1 banknote. It is the same colour and design as its existing counterpart, but has four differences, according to a statement from the Premier’s Office. The first difference is that the new note bears the ‘Celebrate Cayman, 60 Years, Our First Constitution’ logo, located to the left of the Coat of Arms. The signatures of Minister of Finance Roy McTaggart and CIMA Managing Director Cindy Scotland have been relocated to the right of the Queen’s image. The note also has a new security feature – a 4mm-wide RAPID micro-optic purple security thread which demonstrates a dynamic wave effect when the note is tilted. It replaces the magnetic thread running from the top to the bottom of each note. The fourth change, according to the statement, is a distinctive serial number that incorporates the ‘Q/2’ series banknotes and is only used for special occasions. All other security features on the existing ‘D’ series banknotes will remain on the new note. Those include the turtle watermark, a unique serial number on each note, and florescent images. The commemorative banknote can be acquired from CIMA’s Currency Division on the ground floor of the Government Administration Building. The note will be sold at face value ($1) and goes into circulation via retail banks this week. Under CIMA regulations, it is illegal to print or publish anything in the likeness or appearance of all or part of a banknote. It is also illegal to mutilate, deface or perforate any currency note or coin that is legal tender in the Cayman Islands, the statement added. New $1 note to begin circulation The new dollar bill features a logo commemorating the 60th anniversary of Cayman's Constitution. The amended elements of the note are circled. New $1 note features - ‘New Celebrate Cayman, 60 Years, Our First Constitution’ logo. - Minister of Finance Roy McTaggart and CIMA Managing Director Cindy Scotland signatures moved. - A 4 mm wide RAPID micro-optic purple security thread. - Distinctive serial number incorporating the ‘Q/2’ series banknotes. cayman compass 5 news N news WEDNESDAY, 29 JANUARY 2020Decision on port referendum case expected next month RESHMA RAGOONATH rragoonath@compassmedia.ky Even with a Grand Court decision on the port project referendum looming, it is business as usual for Acting Port Director Joseph Woods and his team. “We will continue enhancements to our staff and making improvements to our facilities and equipment in 2020,” Woods told the Cayman Compass as he looked ahead to the operations at the port. Last week, the judicial review case brought by Cruise Port Referendum Cayman member Shirley Roulstone ended in Grand Court after two days of hearings. The case challenged government’s referendum on the $200 million project. Justice Tim Owen said he intended to deliver his ruling on the case during the week of 10 Feb. The longer the delay in the holding of the referendum, which was originally scheduled for 19 Dec. 2019, the longer indecision remains on the future of the project. Meanwhile, operations at the port continue unabated. “The political side of it… that is not for me to get frustrated over or to speak about. I just say this is what we deal with, and that’s the facts,” Woods told the Compass. “So that’s all we have, we make it work. If it gets bigger, we’d be happy. We can do better. If it doesn’t, well… everybody has to be aware that you’re at the breaking point.” Making the best of the present conditions The need for a new cruise berthing and cargo facility has been a long-discussed topic Port director: Business as usual for successive administrations. Opponents to the current proposed project have said the referendum on the facility should separate the cargo aspect from the cruise side. But Woods said there can be no separation, as both aspects are interrelated. “You cannot separate both. There’s no way to separate both. If you only built a cargo facility, you still have inadequate cruise facilities that will have to depend on the cargo facility. You just can’t separate them,” he said. He added that, logistically, the two do not mix together and a separation of facilities is necessary. “When you operate in cargo, especially if you have aggregate, you will always have aggregate falling off trucks. That creates a slip-and-fall situation, that also creates dust that passengers will have to walk in. If you get high wind days, the dust just blows in your face. The two really don’t mix, and if you only do cargo, you’re not helping the cruise aspect of it any… [If you’re only doing cruise you’re] not helping the cargo any. Both have to be done,” he said. Cayman has been fortunate not to have serious incidents with the two operations running as they currently do, he added. “We’ve been very lucky… you might put it that way. But that’s something that we try our best to prevent… any accidents. We try. In an ideal world it would be 100%, but I think we do pretty good seeing that we’ve done it for so long with no real major incidents occurring,” Woods said. He said he has always stated that more space is needed at the port. About an acre and a half of land is shared between cargo operations and cruise operations. Woods explained that, at night, the space is used for cargo operations and the storing of containers when they come off the ships before they can be transported inland. “By the end of the night shift, we have to have at least one acre of that cleared and cleaned as best we can for the cruise operations, for the transportation sector to be able to park on the dock because we have three terminals that we use for cruise, and none of them have transportation facilities. None… zero,” he said. To make space for transportation, Woods said, the containers are stacked on the dock’s edges because the space in the middle is used for the cruise terminals. “Otherwise, passengers would be walking across containers to get near the edge of the pier if you put transportation there, and that’s another safety risk where somebody could slip off and fall off the edge of the dock,” he said. “The containers have no feelings. You put them on edge or near the edge, and you leave a space for passengers, and that’s the best that we can do under the present conditions.” Looking ahead Woods said if the port project gets the go- ahead, that would help take the pressure off his team, but if it does not, as head of the port, he still has to ensure operations are unhindered. “That’s it. If the port project doesn’t go [ahead], we continue working how we are,” Woods said. The acting port director said that, over the last year, approximately $2.2 million has been spent making improvements to assist with the constraints on existing operations. “Last year, we acquired eight brand new trucks to replace the 20-odd-year-old trucks that we had that were long past their useful life. So, the new trucks are much more efficient. We don’t get the breakdowns, we burn less fuel, so that was a significant improvement,” he said. In addition to the fleet upgrades, the port also acquired a new large blade forklift, a new small forklift and two electric forklifts. Woods said there were some improvements to facilities, such as paving Spotts passenger and transportation areas, the Taxi Dispatch Centre, the North Terminal and improvements to SafeHaven, including installation of banks of water meters. He said the Cayman Brac Dock was also refurbished and at the Little Cayman Dock, the first-ever plugs to power refrigerated containers were installed. A total of roughly $86,000 was also expended on IT improvements. In addition to that, Woods said, nine additional port workers were employed in Grand Cayman and one in Cayman Brac. He said further staff increases were planned. All the improvements, he said, were funded from port revenues. “In addition to that, our cash in the bank also grew significantly,” Woods added. Port upgrades 8 new trucks purchased New large blade forklift New small forklift 2 electric forklifts Total cost: $1.147 million Other improvements Paving Spotts passenger and transportation areas Paving of Taxi Dispatch Centre Paving of North Terminal Improvements to SafeHaven (installation of banks of water meters) Cayman Brac Dock refurbishments Little Cayman Dock improvements '' IT upgrades Total cost: $2,207,269 (excluding personnel) Acting Port Director Joseph Woods. Win a trip to Tokyo with your VISA ® Debit ScotiaCard . KY cayman compass 6 news N news WEDNESDAY, 29 JANUARY 2020Beyond prestige and financial support for both high school and university students, the Dart Scholarship provides young Caymanians with life-changing experience in the real world of industry. If you’re a high achieving Caymanian student with aspirations to be a future leader and innovator, we invite you to apply for the 2020 programme. dartscholar.ky A whole new world of possibilities. It begins with a simple application. The Dart High School Scholarship Submit your application by 8 April 2020 The William A. Dart University Scholarship Submit your application by 15 May 2020 cayman compass 7 WEDNESDAY, 29 JANUARY 2020what you think We need your feedback to help us deliver the newspaper that you want. Take part in a quick reader survey that will help us get to know you – our audience – better. Answer 13 quick multiple-choice questions and be entered for a chance to WIN $300 CASH The survey will take less than 5 minutes. Have your say – the survey is open until 31 January Reader Survey caymancompass tell us 2 WAYS TO PARTICIPATE > Go online to caymancompass.com/reader-survey-2020 >Visit reception at Compass Centre on Shedden Road to fill out the survey Compass Centre | 319 Shedden Road | George Town | 345 949 5111 y Answer 13 quick multiple-choice questions and be entered for a chance to WIN $300 CASH The survey will take less than 5 minutes. cayman compass 8 WEDNESDAY, 29 JANUARY 2020US, others prepare evacuations as virus spreads from China BEIJING (AP) — The US and several other nations prepared Tuesday to airlift citizens out of a Chinese city at the centre of a virus outbreak that has killed more than 100 people. Hong Kong’s leader said it will cut all rail links to mainland China and halve the number of flights as authorities in China and overseas sought to stem the spread of the new virus. The number of confirmed cases rose to more than 4,500. The US government chartered a plane to fly out diplomats from the US Consulate in Wuhan, where the outbreak started, and other Americans. A Japanese-chartered Boeing 767 departed for Wuhan to fly out its citizens, the first of two possible flights, and South Korea also said it will send a plane to the city in central China. France, Mongolia and other governments also planned evacuations. China has cut off access to Wuhan and 16 other cities in Hubei province to prevent people from leaving and spreading the virus further. The lockdown has trapped more than 50 million people in the most far-reaching disease-control measures ever imposed. The Japanese flight was bringing 20,000 face masks, as well as protective gear, all in short supply as hospitals grapple with a growing number of patients. The city is building two hospitals in a matter of days to add more than 2,000 beds. US health officials expanded their recommendation for people to avoid non-essential travel to any part of China, rather than just Wuhan and other areas most affected by the outbreak. Asian stock markets tumbled for a second day, dragged down by worries about the virus’s global economic impact. Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam, wearing a green surgical mask, told a news conference that train service would stop at midnight Thursday and that the two stations connecting to the mainland would be closed. She stopped short of a total closing of the border, as North Korea and Mongolia have done, but said ferry and bus service to the mainland would also be suspended. China’s death toll from the new viral disease rose to 106 on Tuesday, including the first death in Beijing, the Chinese capital, and 24 others in Hubei province, where the first illnesses were detected in December. There were 1,771 new cases confirmed in China, raising the national total to 4,515, according to the National Health Commission. It said 976 people were in serious condition. The sharp rise in infections in recent days suggests there has been significant human- to-human spread of the virus, though it could also be explained by expanded monitoring efforts, said Malik Peiris, chair in virology at the University of Hong Kong. Experts worry that the new virus may spread more easily than originally thought, or may have mutated into a form that does so. It is from the coronavirus family, which also can cause the common cold as well as more serious illnesses such as SARS. Infections also have been confirmed in the US, Japan, South Korea, Vietnam, Singapore, Malaysia, Nepal, France, Germany, Canada, Australia and Sri Lanka. The five American cases – two in southern California and one each in Washington state, Chicago and Arizona – are people who had recently arrived from central China. Pilot of Bryant helicopter tried to avoid heavy fog CALABASAS, Calif. (AP) — A veteran pilot who plunged into a Los Angeles-area hillside, killing Kobe Bryant and eight others, had tried to avoid fog so heavy that it had grounded police choppers, authorities said. But even experienced pilots may have only seconds to act when they are blinded by weather, an expert said as investigators began scouring the wreckage for clues to Sunday morning’s crash. The NBA postponed the Los Angeles Lakers’ next game against the Clippers on Tuesday night after the deaths of the retired superstar and the other victims. Bryant’s death at age 41 was mourned around the world in an outpouring of shocked grief. And while the official investigation into the cause of the crash was just beginning and crews were still working to recover the bodies, experts and armchair pilots alike already were flooding social media and the airwaves with speculation. One popular theme was the weather. Dense fog had settled along part of the flight path. The chartered Sikorsky S-76B was a luxury twin-engine aircraft often used by Bryant in traffic- jumping hops around the LA area’s notoriously congested sprawl. It was heading from John Wayne Airport in Orange County to Camarillo Airport in Ventura County when it crashed in Calabasas. Bryant, his 13-year-old daughter, Gianna, and the other passengers were heading to Bryant’s Mamba Sports Academy, a youth sports centre in Thousand Oaks. Bryant was to coach a basketball tournament there in which his daughter was supposed to play. Also killed were John Altobelli, 56, longtime head coach of Southern California’s Orange Coast College baseball team; his wife, Keri; and daughter, Alyssa, who played on the same basketball team as Bryant’s daughter; and Christina Mauser, a girls’ basketball coach at a Southern California elementary school. The pilot, Ara Zobayan, was chief pilot for the craft’s owner, Island Express Helicopters. He also was a flight instructor, had more than 8,000 hours of flight time and had flown Bryant and other celebrities several times before, including Kylie Jenner. Randy Waldman, a helicopter flight instructor who lives in Los Angeles, said the radar-tracking data he’s seen leads him to believe the pilot got confused in the fog and went into a fatal dive. The aircraft’s speed “means he was completely out of control and in a dive,” Waldman said. “Once you get disoriented, your body senses completely tell you the wrong thing. You have no idea which way is up or down,” he said. “If you’re flying visually, if you get caught in a situation where you can’t see out the windshield, the life expectancy of the pilot and the aircraft is maybe 10, 15 seconds,” Waldman said. Some experts raised questions of whether the helicopter should have even been flying. The weather was so foggy that the Los Angeles Police Department and the county sheriff’s department had grounded their own choppers. The helicopter was flying around Burbank, just north of Los Angeles, when the pilot received air traffic control permission to use special visual flight rules, allowing the helicopter to fly in less-than-optimal visibility and weather conditions. Zobayan was told to follow a freeway and stay at or below 2,500 feet, according to radio traffic. About four minutes later, “the pilot advised they were climbing to avoid a cloud layer,” Jennifer Homendy of the National Transportation Safety Board said Monday. It was his last message to air traffic controllers. On Monday, NTSB investigators scoured the area to collect evidence and Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputies on horseback patrolled the brushy Calabasas hillside. Homendy said the NTSB expected to be on the scene for five days. “It was a pretty devastating accident scene,” she said of the widespread wreckage. “A piece of the tail is down the hill. The fuselage is on the other side of that hill. And then the main rotor is about 100 yards beyond that.” Puerto Rico opens only 20% of schools amid ongoing quakes SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — Puerto Rico opened only 20% of its public schools on Tuesday following a strong earthquake that delayed the start of classes by nearly three weeks as fears linger over the safety of students. Only 177 schools were certified to open after engineers inspected them for damage caused by the magnitude-6.4 earthquake that killed one person and damaged hundreds of homes on 7 Jan. But the inspections were not to determine whether a school could withstand another strong earthquake or had structural shortcomings such as short columns that make it vulnerable to collapse, further worrying parents. “Of course I am afraid,” said 38-year-old Marién Santos, who attended an open house on Monday at her son’s Ramón Vilá Mayo high school in the suburb of Río Piedras where officials gave her a copy of the inspection report and evacuation plans. Her concerns were echoed by the director of the school, Elisa Delgado. While she believes engineers did a thorough inspection of the school, built in the early 1900s, they warned her not to use the main entrance in an evacuation because it leads to an area filled with gas lines. The problem is that the other exits are too narrow to handle the school’s 450 students, she told The Associated Press. “It’s not ideal,” she said. Overall, engineers have inspected 561 of the island’s 856 public schools, finding at least 50 too unsafe to reopen, leaving some 240,000 students out of school for now. Ongoing tremors also are forcing crews to automatically re-inspect schools following any quake of 3.0 magnitude or higher, according to Puerto Rico’s Infrastructure Financing Authority. Since the 6.4 quake, there have been several strong aftershocks, including a 5.9 magnitude one that hit on 11 Jan. and a 5.0 that struck on Saturday. The biggest quake flattened the top two floors of a three- storey school in the southern coastal city of Guánica on 7 Jan., two days before classes were scheduled to start. Overall, experts say that some 500 public schools in Puerto Rico were built before 1987 and don’t meet new construction codes. A plan to retrofit all schools that need it, an estimated 756 buildings, would cost up to $2.5 billion, officials have said, noting those are preliminary figures. Education Secretary Eligio Hernández noted that another 51 schools are scheduled to start classes on 3 Feb. and that his department is reviewing recommendations on how best to proceed with the other schools. “The Department of Education is going to take the time it needs and will take all necessary actions so that parents ... feel satisfied,” he told reporters on Monday. Elba Aponte, president of Puerto Rico’s Association of Teachers, told the AP that she has received complaints and pictures from parents and school employees of at least 10 schools that are reopening but that they feel are still unsafe. World and regional news in brief A pilot wearing a protective suit parks a cargo plane at Wuhan Tianhe International Airport in Wuhan, China on Tuesday. Most of the coronavirus cases reported in China are in Wuhan. Sheriff's deputies on horseback leave the scene of a helicopter crash that killed former NBA basketball player Kobe Bryant, his 13-year- old daughter, Gianna, and seven others on Monday in Calabasas, California. cayman compass 9 WEDNESDAY, 29 JANUARY 2020Next >