30ft. sinkhole appears North of Ambergris Caye

An approximate 30 foot sinkhole was discovered this morning (Thursday, May 28th, 2009) just south of Ak'bol Yoga Retreat on undeveloped section of land. The sinkhole was discovered by Don David Pena, gardener for the resort, when he showed up for work at 7:00 a.m. It is strongly believed that this was caused due to the earthquake which stemmed off the coast of La Ceiba, Honduras. These allegations will be investigated and their results will be posted as they become available.

Placencia rocked by earthquake

The following images are of the damage caused to Placencia by the earthquake early Thursday morning. The 7.1 magnitude earthquake off the coast of Honduras was felt through to Belize as well.
Photos are by Fiona MacFarlane.

Street/pavement had cracks in them from the earthquake.
Cracked school walls.
Seahorse Dive Shop floats in the water.
Homes received structural damage.
Water spouted, leaving holes in the ground.

Tsunami Warning Lifted

Love FM Belize and other international media outlets are reporting that the Tsunami Watch for Belize has been lifted.

An earthquake of magnitude 7.1 occurred 16.7N, 86.3W, North of Honduras on Thursday morning (May 28) at 2:24am Belize time. According to various reports, "...people rushed from their homes as glasses and framed pictures crashed off of shelves. At least five wooden houses on stilts collapsed in three towns and a water tower toppled in the town of Independence, local officials said." Love FM confirmed that the homes and water tower affected were in fact in Monkey River. Structural damage also occurred in Placencia and Independence.

"I urge you not to panic, but to remain calm," National Emergency Minister Melvin Hulse said on the radio. "Your government is monitoring the situation and will be keeping you informed."

A tsunami watch was discontinued for Honduras, Belize and Guatemala.

Belize is out of the 60 mile radius of the localized area where a tsunami would be expected, and since the time frame for a tsunami to occur is a half hour after the earthquake, the possibility of Belize being affected by a tsunami is no more.

As of 5:00am Thursday, classes have not been cancelled, but teachers are being urged to keep the situation monitored at their schools in Punta Gorda, and inform NEMO.

Reports are also confirming that the water system in Monkey River has been affected, and classes may be cancelled in this area. At 5:30 am Belize time, Love FM received notice that the Mango Creek reservoir water tank was cracked as a result of the shock of the earthquake, but that there is backup. Also, no compromise to dam in the Cayo District has been reported as yet, but ground checks will be performed later today. No loss of life has been reported for Belize. Belizeans are being urged to return to normal activities.

One death has been reported in La Lima, Honduras. 14 year old, Ray Maldonado Fúnez was unable to get out of the room where he slept when the earthquake struck in his home at Pineda Dos de La Lima.

Information compiled via: Paul Mahung-Love FM Punta Gorda, Love FM Belize, Yahoo News and CNN. Stay tuned for more information as it becomes available.

Images from Honduras

Puente La Democracia - The middle part of the bridge fell into the river Ulúa.

In Honduras, the injured are being treated at the necessary facilities.

(Images from www.laprensahn.com)

BEL - Planned Power Outage Notice for Corozal District, Orange Walk District and Ambergris Caye on Thursday, May 28,2009

Belize Electricity Limited advises its customers in the Corozal District, Orange Walk District and Ambergris Caye that the supply of electricity will be temporarily interrupted from 8:00 a.m. to 8:15 a.m. and from 3:45 p.m. to 4:00 pm on Thursday, May 28, 2009.
Areas to be affected: the entire Corozal District, Orange Walk District and San Pedro Town.
BEL apologizes for the inconvenience caused but this outage is necessary for the company to perform maintenance works on the distribution system in the area.

For customer inquiries and services call us toll free at: 0-800-BEL-CARE OR 0-800-235-2273. To view scheduled outages via our website visit: http://www.bel.com.bz/services_outages.asp

This notice is for public information purposes only. For more information, contact Belize Electricity Limited, Corporate Communications Department at 227-0954, ext 2502.

Holy Cross and SPHS march against abuse

Under the theme Justice for All this march was designed to increase awareness of the abuse suffered by women and children in San Pedro. However, "it also focused on how the local Police Department must respond to domestic violence under the Violence Against Women Act of 2007", stated a release issued by Holy Cross Anglican School.

This march was held in response to an incident which occurred on Monday, May 18th, involving the San Pedro Police Department, a teacher from Holy Cross and Vernon & Francis Wilson (http://www.sanpedrosun.net/09-203.html). San Pedro High School students joined in the march.People were on hand at Central Park where speeches on abuse were delivered. The incident and march has garnered National media attention.