Category Archives: Bahamas

There is currently an epidemic happening on a small island in the Bahamas and we need to talk about it. It's mystery. It's dreadful. And it's killing our adorable swimming pigs that we all became obsessed with after watching JoJo Fletcher be nearly physically assaulted by one while on a group date on Ben Higgins season of The Bachelor.

The pigs appeared to live a charmed life , living on their personal island and being fed chick hot dogs (as they did on The Bachelor) and being cuddled by tanned vacationers. That is until now.

Yes it is true. The furry, feral piggies are dying! As of now, there are only about 6 or 7 left on the island, according to local reports. The site Tribune 42 writes that an investigation is under way to figure out the cause of death for these beautiful creatures, who also happened to attract many, many visitors and tourist.

After finding about half a dozen deceased pigs on the Big Major Cay, law officials disposed of the bodies by throwing them into the sea, which gives one an awful visual as some of them even grew to be as large as a small Shetland pony, according to one visitor of the island.

More than just saddening, the deaths of the pigs could also have a more sinister twist. The President of the Bahamas Humane Society, Kim Aranha told Tribune 42 that part of the investigation is determining if someone has been intentionally poisoning the farm animals turned beach babes. "It could just be a horrible accident where they ate something poisonous," she said. "It could be malicious but I dont really see why someone would go out of their way to hurt those lovely animals. I know there are a lot of silly sailors that go and feed them alcohol to try and get them drunk but thats not to mistake them with the tour operators based out of Nassau who have treated them with excellent care."

We hope the dedicated investigators are able to get to the bottom of this tragedy and make sure justice in served. In the meantime, we will remember the too short lives of our four-hooved friends below.

See the article here:

The Famous Pigs From The Bachelor Island Date Are Dying - Refinery29

Just hang up if you receive a robocall.

An illegal robocalling scheme that bombarded consumers with 12 million to 15 million robocalls a day using political surveys to sell Florida cruise line vacations to the Bahamas has reached its final chapter.

Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi, the Federal Trade Commission and nine other state attorneys general Tuesday announced the entry of the last consent judgment shutting down the illegal scheme.

The unlawful telemarketing campaign flooded consumers from across the country with billions of unwanted robocalls and generated millions of dollars for the companies.

The fifth and final consent judgment announced Tuesday bars owner Fred Accuardi and his companies from assisting or participating in actions that violate telemarketing laws.

In 2015, Bondi, in partnership with the FTC and other state attorneys general, filed a lawsuit against Caribbean Cruise Line, Inc., a marketing company, as well as seven other companies, for alleged involvement in a scheme that used political survey robocalls to illegally sell cruise vacations. The joint complaint was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida in Fort Lauderdale.

Consumers who answered these calls typically heard a pre-recorded message telling them they had been selected to participate in a 30-second research survey, after which they would receive a free two-day cruise to the Bahamas.

In reality the calls were designed to market Caribbean Cruise Lines cruises and various up-sell packages, the FTC said.

The complaint alleged that the defendants robocalls violated both Florida and federal law by unlawfully using political surveys as a pretext to place sales calls pitching Bahamas cruises and related vacation packages to individuals on do-not-call lists and other individuals they were prohibited from calling.

Accuardi and his companies allegedly assisted and facilitated the illegal calls by providing robocallers with hundreds of telephone numbers. The defendants also allegedly made it possible for robocallers to change their caller identification information, funded a portion of the robocalling campaigns, and hid the robocallers identities from authorities.

In addition to barring Accuardi and his businesses from illegal telemarketing, the consent judgment imposes a judgment of $1.35 million, which will be suspended after the defendants pay $2,500. If the court finds that the defendants misrepresented their financial condition, the entire judgment will become due.

Florida and the FTC led the joint action and were joined by attorneys general in Colorado, Indiana, Kansas, Mississippi, Missouri, North Carolina, Ohio, Tennessee and Washington.

The robocall campaign ran from October 2011 through July 2012.

To view the consent judgment, click here.

To view the order approving the consent judgment, click here.

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Robocall scheme that sold Bahamas cruises is in permanent dry dock - MyPalmBeachPost (blog)

Several of the pig colony at Big Major Cay have suddenly dropped dead

The swimming pigs of the Bahamas are pretty big stars tourists come from far and wide to paddle in the ocean with them.

But the famous animals, who live in a colony at Big Major Cay, could soon be a thing of the past as several have suddenly dropped dead, thought to be from food poisoning.

Alamy

According to reports, there are now just seven or eight pigs left.

The Bahamas Humane Society has now launched an official investigation into why the deaths have occurred.

They have taken a series of water samples to try to determine the cause of death and work out they were accidental or intentional.

BHS President Kim Aranha told the local paper The Tribune: It could just be a horrible accident where they ate something poisonous.

Alamy

Alamy

Kim continued: It could be malicious but I dont really see why someone would go out of their way to hurt those lovely animals.

I know there are a lot of silly sailors that go and feed them alcohol to try and get them drunk but thats not to mistake them with the tour operators based out of Nassau who have treated them with excellent care.

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Swimming with pigs in the Bahamas could soon be a thing of the past as only seven of them are still alive - The Sun

VICTORY SWEET: Team Bahamas players (l-r) Nesly Jean, Lesly St Fleur and Gary Joseph celebrate yesterday as they prevailed with a 3-0 win over Belize in CONCACAF Beach Soccer Championship. The Bahamas advanced to the quarter-finals.

By BRENT STUBBS

Senior Sports Reporter

bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

LESLY St Fleur missed a hat trick but he connected on a pair of goals and Gary Joseph added the other as the Bahamas team electrified the crowd for the second consecutive night at the CONCACAF Beach Soccer Championship with a 3-0 victory over Belize.

The crowd in the new beach soccer stadium at the foot of the Sir Sidney Poitier Bridge grew larger than the opening night on Monday when the Bahamas knocked off Guyana 4-1 and once again they were entertained by a superb performance by the host team as they advanced to the quarter-finals.

With seven minutes and 34 seconds on the clock in the second period, Lesly St Fleur retrieved the ball after kicking in a side kick and booted in the first goal for the Bahamas for a 1-0 lead. The goal came after the Bahamas got off to a slow start after being more aggressive in the first third.Two minutes later, Kyle Williams got a crisscross pass to St Fleur, but he missed his second attempt at the goal.

It wasnt until 7:01 left in the third third that Joseph faced the goal and connected with a shot up the middle for the Bahamas second goal.

I feel good that I scored. When I saw that Lesly was scoring, I said I had to score too, Joseph said. It made me feel good that I was able to score. We played good. All of the hard work is paying off for us right now.

Goalkeeper Ivan Rolle made three consecutive saves before St Fleur got an assist from Williams with 5:22 left in the game for his second goal and a 3-0 lead for the Bahamas. On the next play, St Fleur got to the left corner of the goal but his attempt at the goal just clipped the goal post.

Weve been training hard for this, so all of the effort was put into the game. I trained hard, so I wanted to come out here and play hard, stated St Fleur, who increased his goal total to five over the two games after his hat trick against Guyana.

Goalie Rolle got a bit shaken up on an inadvertenthit from Belizes Jeremy James. That resulted in Williams coming to his aid. Team physician Eugena Patton checked him out and he was eventually replaced by Torin Ferguson as the Bahamas held on for their second straight win.

Weve been pressuring him a lot and at least hes showing up right now, so all of the pressure weve been putting on him, hes showing up and doing his part, said St Fleur of Ivan Rolle, the tall, lanky goalie.

The game opened with Meza getting a penalty kick on Dwayne Forbes foul. But his shot went wide of the goal post. It turned out to be a physical first third as the Bahamas blew a number of opportunities to touch the back of the net. Forbes and Lesly St Fleur came close to booting in the Bahamas first goal, but neither got the opportunity to score.

It was Jeans chance, but he missed an attempt right up the middle. On an assist from St Fleur, Williams fell short of his attempt. So did captain Gavin Christie on his left corner shot.

Meza was the recipient of another penalty shot on Jeans foul, but he once again missed the chance to score.

Just before the period ended, Christie had another attempt at a goal, but he was stopped by two defenders right in front of the goal post.

The Bahamas, coached by Alexandre Soares and Stephen Bellot, will now prepare for a big showdown 8pm tonight against Jamaica, who rebounded from their 5-5 loss on 2-0 penalty shots to Belize in their opening match on Monday by knocking off Guyana last night just before the Bahamas played Belize.

We just have to go out there and play hard, said St Fleur about the much anticipated match-up with Jamaica. We just have to come out the way we did in the first two games and hopefully we can pull it off again.

In the other games played yesterday, Guadeloupe got their tournament debut win 5-4 over hapless Barbados, who dropped to 0-2; Panama also opened play with a 1-1 (2-1 on penalty win) over Costa Rica, who fell to 0-1; El Salvador also kicked off tournament play with a 9-2 rout over the Turks and CaicosIslands, who are 0-1 and Mexico improved to 2-0 with an 8-3 thrashing of Canada, now 1-1.

Continued here:

Bahamas Gets 3-0 Win Over Belize - Bahamas Tribune

2017-02-22 20:00 - Louzel Lombard Steyn

Cape Town - It's one of those bucket list adventures - swimming with the famous ocean pigs of the Bahamas.

But the international attraction might be nearing its end, as a whole lot of the widely adored swimming pigs were found dead on the beach of Big Major Cay, or Pig Beach, this past weekend.

Pig Beach is an uninhabited island located in Exuma in the Bahamas.

SEE:The Ultimate #NoRegrets travel bucket list for 2017

According to local reports, there are now only about seven or eight pigs left. Investigators are still working to figure out exactly what happened.

According to to the Bahamas Humane Society President Kim Aranha, speaking to the local Tribune 242, veterinarians have been collecting samples of the deceased pigs, but it is not clear how long it will take to determine what killed them.

It could be malicious," Aranha says, "but I dont really see why someone would go out of their way to hurt those lovely animals." One theory is that the pigs ingested something poisonous, given the sudden death of multiple pigs.

For now, visitors can still travel to Big Major Cay or Pig Beach to swim with the remaining pigs.

This is what the iconic tourist destination with its paddling pigs look like:

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Bahamas famous swimming pigs found dead in ocean - only seven or eight left - News24

Schedule

YESTERDAY

Canada 6

Barbados 4

United States 8

US Virgin Islands 1

Mexico 9

Guadeloupe 2

Trinidad and Tobago 8

Antigua and Barbuda 1

Jamaica 5

Belize 5

(Belize win 2-0

on penalties)

Bahamas 4

Guyana 1

TODAY

1:45pm Guadeloupev Barbados

3pm - Costa Rica v Panama

4:15pm - El Salvador v Turks & Caicos Islands

5:30pm - Canada v Mexico

6:45pm - Guyana v Jamaica

8pm -Belize v Bahamas

Wednesday, February 22, 2017

1:45pm - US Virgin Islands v Trinidad & Tobago

3pm - Antigua & Barbuda v United States

4:15pm - Panama v El Salvador

5:30pm - Belize v Guyana

6:45pm - Turks & Caicos Islands v Costa Rica

8pm - Bahamas v Jamaica

Thursday, February 23, 2017

1:45pm - Canada v Guadeloupe

3pm - Antigua & Barbuda v US Virgin Islands

4:15pm - Mexico v Barbados

5:30pm - El Salvador v Costa Rica

6:45pm - Panama v Turks & Caicos Islands

8pm - United States v Trinidad & Tobago

Friday, February 24

Sunday, February 26

Quaterfinals, Semi-finals and Finals

Games start at 11:15am

Teams TBD

By RENALDO DORSETT

Sports Reporter

rdorsett@tribunemedia.net

The Bahamas mens national team gave the home crowd of eager spectators the opener they were hoping for and set the tone for the remainder of Confederation of North, Central America and Caribbean Association Football (CONCACAF) Beach Soccer Championship.

Lesly St Fleur recorded a hat trick and Kyle Williams answered Guyanas only goal of the game as the Bahamas earned a 4-1 win over Guyana in the day one finale last night at the national beach soccer facility.

St Fleur, who scored two of his goals in the first period, said the team was inspired by the home crowd but is mindful that a good showing at CONCACAF is key for the ultimate goal of performing well at the FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup 2017.

We played well but there are always improvements in getting ready for the World Cup. Coming out and putting on a good performance in game one was key for us. We have to come back out and play the same type of game we played to keep this going, he said. Im the teams leading scorer, theres a lot of pressure on me but Im ready for that. As a team leader you have to go out there, play with heart and lead with example.

In the first period, The Bahamas Gary Joseph drew an interference call when he attempted an overhead kick for the sides first real scoring opportunity, but Guyanas Ethan Sparman was able to come up with the save.

The Bahamas was the aggressor early on with three shots on goal within the first three minutes of play.

St. Fleur would score the first goal a bicycle kick that found the back of the net at the7:39mark in the first third. He would score on another penalty kick about a minute later at the 6:37 mark to take a quick 2-0 lead. St. Fleur nearly pulled off the entire hat trick in the first third, but was just saved by Sparman.

Nursing a 2-0 advantage, the Bahamas controlled the pace of the game, and escaped several near scoring opportunities from Guyana Jashuan Moores strike just missed left, Jamal Haynes free kick ricocheted off the crossbar, and Bahamas goalkeeper Ivan Rolle kept the opponents scoreless with an incredible save on the another free kick from Deshawn Joseph.

Rolle, the youngest player on the team at 20-years-old,delivered an impressive performance protecting the goal.

I think the jitterbugs are out for me. It was my first tournament, but after this game now Im ready to move forward and continue playing my role in helping this team win, he said, We want to show the world that we deserve to be in the World Cup, not just have the easy path so it is major for us to gain everyones confidence moving forward. It was a great turnout, thanks to everyone at home for making this atmosphere possible.

In the third period, Rolle delivered a perfect throw in to St. Fleur, who was unpressuredand made another bicycle kick for a 3-0 lead with10:08left to play. Guyana scored on a great individual breakaway effort from Joseph. But the Bahamas would expand on the 3-1 lead and put the game away when St.Fleur delivered a cross and Williams finished with a header at the 4:41 mark.

The Bahamas will face Belize - who beat Jamaica on penalties after finishing level at 5-5 - tonight at 8pm as Group Stage play continues.

Other scores from day one included: Canada def. Barbados (6-4), USA def. the US Virgin Islands (8-1), Mexico def. Guadeloupe (9-2) and Trinidad and Tobago def. Antigua and Barbuda (8-1)

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Bahamas tops Guyana 4-1 at CONCACAF beach soccer | The Tribune - Bahamas Tribune

Bahamas Teams Brave Acute Winter Weather To Take Part In Travel Shows

NEW YORK Low Winter temperatures, a snowstorm and blizzard, was not enough to stop the Bahamas Ministry of Tourism Managers, as well as its Hoteliers and representatives from their Promotion Boards attendance, at the recent New York Times and Boston Globe Travel Shows.

Their collective participation provided an impressive representation for The Islands Of The Bahamas.

During the weekend of the recent New York Times Travel Show, temperatures dipped into the 30s.

The Boston Globe Travel Show took place the week that city experienced first a snow storm, a blizzard and then temperatures that dipped to wind chill factors as low as 13 degrees below zero.

In both instances, teams representing The Bahamas welcomed Travel agents, media and consumers to their booth to provide them with information on the Sunny Bahamas as an alternative to the north east coast winter weather.

Thirty thousand plus persons attended the New York Times show, which is touted as the largest consumer travel trade show nationally. The shows exhibitors featured 560 companies representing 170 destinations vying for a piece of the pie of the multi billion travel industry.

The Boston Globe Travel Show also saw a reasonably good number of both travel agents and consumers who braved acute winter conditions to attend.

At The Bahamas booth in both cities, consumers were updated on new developments in The Bahamas.

Travel Agents were assured of The Bahamas commitment to their profession that is evidenced in the countrys signature agents tools including a monthly Bahamas Travel Agents Newsletter and the recently unveiled Bahamas Specialist Program through the Travel Agent Academy.

Bahamas East Coast Area Manager, Mikala Moss also updated those agents that attended the Boston Globes Round Table discussions.

The Out Island Promotion Boards booth featured a special consumer offer to The Islands Of The Bahamas a limited time offer of Two Fly Free to an Out Island, from the city of Nassau, Bahamas.

Mikala Moss, Bahamas Ministry of Tourism, East Coast Area Manager, led the Bahamas team in both cities with Chrystal Bethel, Sales Manager New York.

Edward Archer, General Manager, Atlanta and Judy Pratt, Sales Manager, Florida assisted the New York team at the NY Times Show.

In Boston they were assisted by Jeannie Gibson, Manager, Global Communications Florida.

Partners at the Bahamas Booth in both cities included The Nassau/Paradise Island Promotion Board; The Grand Bahama Island Tourism Board and the Bahamas Out Islands Promotion Board. Hotel partners included Breezes, Nassau, Bahamas.

L-R: Mikala Moss, Bahamas Area Manager, East Coast; Loreal Sweeting, Bahamas Out Islands Promotion Board; Everald Christie, Breezes Resort, Nassau Bahamas; Donna Munroe Isidora, Grand Bahama Tourism Board; Mary DiPasquale, Nassau/Paradise Island Promotion Board; Jeannie Gibson, Bahamas Tourism, Global Communications; Chrystal Bethel, Bahamas Marketing Manager, New York and Carmel Churchill, Grand Bahama Island Tourism Board.

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Bahamas Well Represented at NY Times and Boston Globe Travel ... - South Florida Caribbean News

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PHOTO: The beach in Nassau, Bahamas. (Photo via Flickr/Aaron Headly)

Why relax on the beach and stare at the ocean when you could be exploring its depths?

Have you ever wondered what it would be like to go scuba diving but youre weary of all that gear?

Well, the Bahamas Ministry of Tourism details a SNUBA adventure, which mixes together the ease and approachability of snorkeling, and the advantage of scuba diving.

READ MORE Take Advantage of Value Added Tax Free Shopping in The Bahamas

As a part of Stuart Cove'sdiving tour, you, your family and friends and other travelers will all get on a boat and before you know you it, youre in the deep blue sea.

Discover the beauty of the reef, witness numerous ocean species swimming around you and dont be afraid to go deep into the 20 feet of water.

Per the Bahamas Ministry of Tourism blogger, anywhere from 30-50 people will go on a SNUBA adventure every day. The tour started back in 2012 and if you know how to swim, youre good to go. No prior scuba or experience is needed.

For more information on Bahamas Ministry of Tourism, check out their blog here.

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Art is a veteran travel writer.

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Take the Unlikely Plunge into the Beautiful Waters of The Bahamas - TravelPulse (blog)

Swimming with pigs in Exuma has been a bucket list item for many travelers heading to the Bahamas for years. But on Sunday, a number of the widely adored, doggy-paddling pigs were found dead on the beach of Big Major Cay.

Investigators are still working to figure out exactly what happened.

According to Tribune 242, the number of pigs that died is still undetermined.

I understand there are seven or eight pigs still alive. Its still unclear on the number of animals that are dead, Bahamas Humane Society President Kim Aranha told Tribune 242. Id say its more than seven but certainly not the 15 as initially reported on social media. The veterinarians are bringing the samples back but I cant say how long it will take to get the results.

One theory is that the pigs accidentally ingested something poisonous, given the sudden death of multiple pigs.

It could be malicious but I dont really see why someone would go out of their way to hurt those lovely animals, Aranha said.

For now, you can still visit the remaining pigs at Big Major Cay.

Originally posted here:

Widely Adored Swimming Pigs Found Dead in the Bahamas - Travel+Leisure

NASSAU, The Bahamas, Monday February 20, 2017 A brute force approach in The Bahamas by the Perry Christie administration to rake in millions of dollars owed from outstanding tax revenue is paying off $15 million every month to be exact, says Financial Secretary in the Ministry of Finance Simon Wilson.

But he says that is just the tip of the iceberg, as the Government goes after delinquent taxpayers to recover arrears in excess of $600 million.

On average, this effort has yielded $15 million a month. Our target is $400 millionin two yearsin incremental revenue without adjusting [tax] rates. We believe thats quite achievable, Wilson said.

Weve listened to our advisers who suggested taking a more aggressive stance. Their target is two times that. And that $15 million is only on New Providence, he continued, adding that the crackdown would soon extend to businesses in Abaco, Grand Bahama and Eleuthera.

The initiative launched last November pressures businesses to pay up arrears in four key areas Value Added Tax (VAT), Business Licence fees, Real Property Tax and Customs duties.

Wilson told the recent State of the Economy 2017 forum hosted by the Chamber of Commerce that theDepartment of Inland Revenuehadzeroed in on 800 entities importing/selling more than $30,000 worth of goods per year without businesses licenses.

He pointed to 24,000 properties in New Providence whose owners had not placed them on the roll for Real Property Tax increases.

In addition, the Government has also netted a significant number of shippers allowing goods to come in without proper business licences and names.

Acknowledging there was some resistance from some quarters, Wilson said the crackdown was the best approach to avert new or increased taxes as the Government attempts to boost its annual revenues by around four to five percentage points of gross domestic product (GDP).

The obvious way to get there is increasing tax rates or finding new taxes, he said. Weve taken a new approach because the system is sufficient to achieve this by being more aggressive on tax compliance.

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Tough Approach on Tax Arrears Pays Off For Bahamas Government - Caribbean360.com (subscription)