Water lockdown - Drought triggers ban by NWC as conditions expected to continue into September or October Several parishes will be under water prohibition orders as of this week. The National Water Commission (NWC) announced yesterday that it will issue a water prohibition notice tomorrow, with enforcement measures taking effect on August 17. The decision, which comes on the heels of daily water lock-off measures announced last week, followed a high-level stakeholder meeting yesterday involving the NWC and the Meteorological Service.
‘School will not be the same’ - Little London Primary mourns slain teacher Andre James WESTERN BUREAU: The murder of schoolteacher Andre James has rattled the Little London Infant and Primary School community as it mourns one of its most dedicated educators. James, 39, was found dead at a house in Pitini district in Bluefields, Westmoreland, on Sunday afternoon. “This school community will not be the same come September without Mr James,” school board Chairman Councillor Ian Myles told The Gleaner on Monday.
CCJ leaks won’t sway PNP The allegations that have emerged about the operations of the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) have not affected the Opposition People’s National Party (PNP) stance that it should replace the Britain-based Privy Council as Jamaica’s final court of appeal, party President Mark Golding has declared. In fact, Golding told The Gleaner that the emails cited by Trinidad and Tobago newspaper, the Sunday Express, “disclose an internal environment in which the judges feel free to express their independent and opposing views forthrightly to the president of the court”.
MoBay perimeter road taking shape as deadline looms Western Bureau: With the September 2026 deadline for the phased opening of the US$354-million Montego Bay Perimeter Road Project fast approaching, steady progress is being reported by Minister of Works Robert Morgan. The perimeter road is a major infrastructure development aimed at easing the severe traffic congestion plaguing the western city while also unlocking new lands for sustainable development. The construction is being managed by the National Road Operating and Constructing Company Limited (NROCC) and is being built by China Harbour Engineering Company (CHEC).
West to get plyboard classroom amid slow post-Melissa repair Western Bureau: With several schools in western Jamaica still in a state of disrepair, nine months after Hurricane Melissa, the Ministry of Education, Skills, Youth, and Information’s Region Four has indicated that temporary buildings are being set up at some institutions to facilitate classes ahead of the upcoming school year.
Parenting plea - Regional director urges greater support towards children’s education WESTERN BUREAU: With the new school year just weeks away, Dr Michelle Pinnock, regional director for the Ministry of Education, Skills, Youth, and Information’s Region Four, is calling for parents to be more proactive in supporting their children’s academic growth. Pinnock was speaking at a back-to-school financial aid programme hosted by Caribbean Excelerate Energy at Pier One Restaurant in Montego Bay, St James, yesterday. The event was held to provide school vouchers and supplies to 1,200 students across Montego Bay, Old Harbour in St Catherine, and Clarendon.
Hanover schools still reeling from ‘Melissa’ pain Western Bureau: With the 2026-27 school year looming, several schools across Hanover that were damaged during the passage of Hurricane Melissa remain in a significant state of disrepair, raising concerns about how they will cope when classes resume. Following recent concerns raised by Knockalva Technical High School principal Gregory Brown about the slow pace of repairs at his school, other principals across the western parish have been coming forward to raise their own concerns.
Tourism stakeholders eye big business through JAPEX amid hurricane recovery WESTERN BUREAU: Having facilitated $100 million in commercial contracts and business negotiations for Jamaica’s tourism sector last year, the Jamaica Product Exchange (JAPEX), one of the country’s most important tourism marketing events, returns next month amid the industry’s post-Hurricane Melissa recovery. The 36th staging of JAPEX will be held at Moon Palace in Ocho Rios from September 14 to 18, marking the trade show’s return to the resort town after more than a decade and its first staging since Melissa struck Jamaica last October.
Scammers’ car wash Two Jamaican lottery scammers directed their elderly American victims to deposit millions of dollars into accounts they used to operate separate used-car dealerships in Jamaica, United States (US) authorities have charged. The allegations were detailed in documents filed in a US court in the case against Jordan Trought, the Jamaican lottery scammer who pleaded guilty for his role as a high-ranking member of an international fraud scheme that stole more than US$9 million, or about J$1.4 billion, from more than 200 elderly American citizens through a sweepstakes scam.
CCJ under scrutiny - Regional court urged to move on allegations of division, ‘toxic’ environment Allegations that have emerged about the operations of the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) should be urgently addressed, a former senior regional diplomat has asserted. “It is not a trivial matter, and I am hoping that those responsible for the CCJ itself will in fact treat it with the urgency and the seriousness with which it deserves,” Ambassador Byron Blake, former assistant secretary general of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), told The Gleaner yesterday.