travel news review


9 October '98
Trouble in paradise: cruise lines are recommending increased safety precautions for passengers going ashore in Nassau. In July and August, two women tourists disappeared and their bodies were later found at a local beach. In early September, a cruise line crew member was shot in the early morning. A suspect has been apprehended for the first two murders and there is no known connection with the recent shooting. Cruise lines are recommending that passengers rely on common sense and travel in pairs.

23 September '98
Hurricane Georges is pounding the Caribbean. He's battered Antigua, Montserrat, St. Kitts & Nevis, Saint Eustatius, Saba and the Virgin Islands with 130mph (210kph) winds, and killed at least six people on Puerto Rico and three in the Leewards. In the Dominican Republic, he's tossed telephone poles and tin roofs all over the eastern end of the island. Georges' eye passed just north of Santo Domingo and was expected to hit Haiti later in the day.

Travellers should be aware that electricity and phone services on these islands are unreliable at best, medical facilities are overburdened and drinking water is scarce and likely to be contaminated. Landslides and flooding are constant dangers, and transportation may be difficult or impossible to obtain.

The Dominican Republic, Haiti, eastern Cuba, the Turks & Caicos and the southern and central Bahamas are all subject to hurricane warnings. Georges is headed straight for Miami. Tourists have been evacuated from the Florida Keys, and the southeastern coast of Florida is bracing for the worst.

10 June '98
After weeks of work slowdowns, the Hotel, Catering and Allied Workers Union in Nassau called a strike on 4 June. Over 4000 strikers hit the streets and demonstrations blocked access to many of the major hotels and created traffic jams.