Two weeks ago as hurricane Julia ravaged the Mosquito Coast, the rains on its outer bands also inundated the already disappearing coast of Monkey River.
Monkey River is a village caught up between eroding beach on the east and an encroaching swamp to the west, and in a fight with nature for their very survival.
Still, that didn't stop erosion warrior Eworth Garbutt and his team from going there over the weekend. That's the same team that saved Silk Caye and they are now trying to bring that can-do community attitude to Monkey River. PGTV was there:
Compol Went To India, Not "Curry" with Spicy Food
Commissioner of police Chester Williams returned from India over the weekend. He had traveled there a week earlier to attend the 90th Interpol General Assembly. He told the hosts about the main focus of the meeting this morning on the Sunup couch:
And while he easily mastered the technical aspects of the meeting, mastering the food was another matter altogether. He explained that the Compol was not "curry" with all that spicy food:
And, while the sightseeing portion of the trip garnered a nasty post from the UDP - the Compol says not a dime of taxpayers money was spent:
The Story of CC: Rise, Rise, Rise
And in other news, the annual Miss Y Pageant was held this past weekend, and while all the contestants came out to put on a show, only one could be the winner. Carrolyn Clarke took home the crown and the title. Clarke told us today that she didn't expect first place, but that she believes her hard work paid off. She also explained that it has always been a dream of hers to enter the pageant and to inspire others. Clarke spoke of the challenges she had to overcome regarding her former drug addiction, and says she's proud of how far she's come.
We spoke to her today outside of her restaurant, Shirlz Homestyle Cuisine.
The first runner up was Diane McKay.
Tourism Honors The Best
Belize's 22nd Annual Tourism Awards were held on Saturday night in a Ceremony meant to honour and celebrate the excellence of the industry's best performers. It recognized excellence in service in several categories with some of the highest honours going to the best restaurant and best hotel of the year.
The title of Best Restaurant went to Elvi's kitchen and its esteemed chef Jennie Staines stepped up to the podium on Saturday night to accept the award.
The honour of Best hotel went to Sleeping Giant Lodge. In accepting their award they highlighted the excellence of their team and a business partner that they say they couldn't do anything without. Here is that acceptance speech.
Other winners were "Off the Wall Dive Center" for Small Accomodation of the year, John Grief & Steven Schulte with Lifetime Achievement Awards, and Sharon Matola who was given a Posthumous award.
We Remember Darwin
And, as we close tonight, we note the death of one of Channel 7's long serving employees. Darwin Conorquie died today after a period of illness. The 43 year old had worked as a master control operator at Channel 7 for eighteen years - and was a part of our family. We miss him dearly and mourn him deeply - but not nearly as much as his family. Our deepest condolences are with them tonight. Darwin leaves behind a wife and three kids.
