FireONE FX: Winch caused flag woes

In a statement that made no mention of the late businessman, the company said no directive had been issued by the Ministry of National Security to fly national flags at half mast and so no such directive was in effect.

“As you are aware, correct flag protocol dictates that flags are to be flown at half mast only on official occasions of public mourning as is the case when the Head of State, Prime Minister or other dignitary dies.

“Recently, flags in Trinidad & Tobago were flown at half mast in observance of the deaths of former Prime Minister, Patrick Manning and former Cuban President, Fidel Castro. No such directive is in effect at this time.” “We can however report that we experienced difficulty in hoisting the flag this morning, when a winching mechanism which is used to raise the flag along the length of the pole, malfunctioned.

“We are reliably informed by our technical team that as a result of recent disuse, the winching mechanism ‘seized’ when operated today.” The statement said that any photographs depicting the flag at half-mast were likely taken during that period.

“The issue was subsequently resolved, and at around 10 am the flag was lifted to full mast and was flown in its ‘correct’ position for the remainder of the day – a fact that anyone who was in the area after that time can readily attest to.” The flag at Macoya has not been flown for weeks due to a lack of foreign currency to buy replacements.

The flag is 2,160 sq ft in size (its dimensions are 60 feet by 36 feet) and it is flown on a pole 150 feet in height.

“Due to the high winds at this location, the flag is changed every two to three months.

A shipment of Flags was received this past weekend and our team set about to install a new flag this morning.” The company said they fully bear the cost of hundreds of thousands of dollars for this flag as a display of national pride