Last night at 8:15 pm, when our transmission broke due to power failure here on Albert Street we were giving you up to the minute images and details on the looting and chaos on Albert Street. Our teams had been on the story without departure since afternoon. Last night we showed you that it started when students went to clear students out of high schools on Princess Margaret Drive. That then turned into a protest on the Prime Minister's residence. And when that was dispersed it turned famously into that protest on the Belcan Bridge. Our Alfonso Noble along with cameramen Lewis Munoz and Fortunato Noble were there for every minute of it and today he put together a timeline of the events that culminated in last night's chaos on Albert Street.
Alfonso Noble Reporting,
At 4 p.m., students took control of Belcan Bridge by parking their vehicles
in the middle of it and
obstructing any traffic from flowing through. This held for a few minutes until Assistant Commissioner of Police Crispin Jeffries and Assistant Superintendent Edward Broaster began making their way to the obstruction. They made their way up the bridge and Jeffries explained his next move.
Crispin Jeffries,
"Watch how we will clear this, easy...too easy."
As it turned out it was anything but easy as the crowd was excited by that
confrontation between Jeffries and 19-year-old Nazima Reyes who had her vehicle damaged when the policemen tried to remove it from the bridge. It continued with some moments where an irate Reyes vented her frustration on the policemen she believed were responsible for the damages.
Nazima Reyes,
"This man ya so just knock me. He punch me, he knock me, he bruk me [expletive] vehicle."
After she told us what had happened to her the agitated state continued until the police decided to withdraw from the crowd and form a human barricade on the northern approach and thus the standoff began.
By then it was around 4:30 and the crowd had grown with union representatives making their way onto the bridge. Then the
sit-in began being led primarily by very young students all under the watchful eyes of the Special Patrol Unit whose members stood their ground. By a few minutes after five, pedestrian traffic on the bridge was flowing when workers who needed to get across filed along while SPU officers walked in, launchers in hand. And then came the appearance
of more union leaders including Zenaida Moya and they would soon begin to sing the national anthem. Even a small drizzle did not phase these protestors.
By 5:20 the sit in was in full effect with union leaders themselves sitting on the bridge in show of defiance and resolve. By this time SPU and ADU officers
had formed another barricade this time on the southern approach of Belcan Bridge all this time, the crowd continued to swell in numbers.
Up to this point, it remained uneventful with some of the students taking time to study their management lessons. By 5:30, BCWU President Paul Perriot made his appearance, bearing a confident stride and some analysis.
Alfonso Noble,
Paul is this what you wanted?
Paul Perriot,
"Dah just the beginning of something big, the beginning of change."
Change that involved more people who were by this time being allowed on the bridge including BWS workers led by Union President Russell Young. Soon thereafter the solitary figure Dean Barrow made an appearance meeting first with Reyes then giving union leaders who now included the Energy Workers Union Mark Butler a pep talk.
Soon enough the spark would begin when irate family members including Reyes' father and mother began asking for an explanation for what had occurred earlier. Not having much of it Jeffries would pull out a canister possibly filed with tear gas or pepper spray. While he did not use it Reyes' family members continued their verbal assault on Jeffries. Soon enough SPU officers surrounded Jeffries making it very difficult to get to him.
Soon enough the first stone was thrown followed by more harsh words. It continued for a few minutes with the Reyes' and their family intent on venting their displeasure. And then came the stones and sticks forcing officers to retreat to the northern end of Belcan to the great pleasure of those on the bridge.
The crowd then calmed down a bit until a lone police vehicle was spotted inside the Advance Advertising Ideas parking lot and it was forced out with projectiles. Then a tire bonfire was ignited and then a
second was started all the
while being fueled by anything that would burn.
The fires would continue to go and expand while the crowd looked on. By 6:40, the fires had intensified when someone in the crowd threw a bundle of old boxes unto the bonfire. It kept on like this for a few minutes until someone threw the first stone into BWS' offices forcing personnel inside to barricade themselves in while someone in the crowd unloaded a few rounds into the air. And then the crowd began to chant their next objective.
[Crowd Shouting: 'Albert Street.']
While the crowd decided on Albert Street, half an hour after the reports were being made, Queen Street was being secured allowing those in attendance at a PUP's Belize City Area Representatives meeting being held in Independence Hall to leave.
While onlookers waited for the arrival of the mob from Belcan Bridge. Police vehicles with soldiers wielding their weapons streaked across into Queen Street. Shortly there after a swarm of mostly young men on bicycles and foot made their arrival on Albert Street from Orange Street and it was.
[Man Shouting: 'Hofius! Free Giveaway']
Hofius was then looted for anything the mob
could get their hands on. Then it was on to other stores: Brodies, Venus, Miami Fashion, Gaylord's.
Then the riot squat was deployed up Albert
Street only then did we get to see some of the damage done on the first store. The entire glass face of the building had been broken and the hardware store had been cleaned out. The same went for Venus Store. Some calm was then restored on Albert Street broken only by the loud bangs of explosives being detonated near the Battlefield Park. Having this young woman completely petrified. And while she calmed down the wake of disaster and disorder was visible everywhere, with scatterings of cash registers, bubble gum machines, and CD's everywhere. Venus Store had been completely emptied of all its wares and the riot squad continued its patrol on the Alberts. Officer Commanding CIB ASP Chester Williams then made his inspections. First at Brodies while employees from Venus tried to secure their store. Then it was Gaylord's
where Williams and two other officers caught some looters with the goods in their hands, guns on the ready they detained them in the store with Williams firing into the building. The officers tried to hold the crowd in but they were soon overpowered and making a quick escape while shots were being fired. Those remaining inside were cornered by the riot squad and kept in. Once there some officers issued a few blows with their batons. They were taken out and into custody.
Shortly thereafter it turned pitch black as the lights went out but police had now asserted themselves in the streets, while having to respond to a fire that had been set inside Miami Fashions on Albert Street. This was however quickly extinguished by residents who threw buckets of water on the blaze.
While the riot squad manned the swing bridge in the pitch of night, bankers went out to inspect the damage at First Caribbean where the night deposit box was pulled out of place and the glass door had sustained some very intense pounding causing the glass to shatter but not to be broken into. By 10:00 police were finishing up the securing process taking in people.
And while that was Albert Street, the looting was not limited there as three
gas stations were looted: Shell One-Stop at the corner of Central American Boulevard and Cemetery Road, Texaco at the foot of the Bel-China bridge and Esso Superstation on Cemetery Road.
And while some business got the worst of it there were others that were untouched like JL's that on this night called out a crew of workers to put up storm shutters. And while that was taking place, the police continued their work continuing the detention process. Even Assistant Commissioner Jeffries was in on the work, detaining these 15 young men at the corner of East Canal and Bishop Street to be taken to Queen Street.
As the policemen did their work the high command was out as well. Commissioner of Police Gerald Westby accompanied by Commandant Lloyd Gillett along with CEO in the Ministry of Home Affairs Allan Usher made their assessments.
At the end of the very long and exhausting night the COMPOL would not talk to us while the CEO had only one thing to say.
Allan Usher, CEO in Home Affairs
"Just one word, disgraceful."
Jules Vasquez,
Anything you all could have done to stop this?
Allan Usher,
"I just want to say its disgraceful."
And by the end of the night four hours after it had started on Albert Street, the riot squad remained on the Swing Bridge making sure the streets had been calmed down but it seems that some things would never be the same again.
And while pockets of unrest continue to flare up, no state of emergency has been declared but this afternoon most city businesses and schools closed down. Thought there is no official shutdown or strike, from what we've been able to gather, the businesses feared becoming the victims of roving gangs and Belize District schoolteachers were called to an emergency meeting of the district branch of the Teachers' Union. We'll tell you more about that meeting later.
