Cedros councillor Shankar Teelucksingh said concerns are mounting that the vast acreage of the floating mass is perilously close to active oil wells in the Gulf of Paria. Speaking with Newsday yesterday, Teelucksingh said the piece of land was seen near the south west Soldado rock. He wants the authorities to place markers or issue a bulletin to seafarers.

“We are fortunate that it didn’t pass through the south west oil field because it would have caused some devastation to those active wells,” Teelucksingh said.

“The last report we got is that it was heading towards one of the Venezuelan oil rigs. It is moving very slow under strong current and poses a threat to marine vessels.” He said he was aware Petrotrin (Trinmar operations) is monitoring the movement of the “island” which, Teelucksingh said, was spotted on Thursday about two miles off Icacos.

He said one fisherman who visited the island reportedly caught three iguanas. “We know what is on top (island) as there is healthy vegetation. From what I have been told, the plant life including the trees are very healthy. We are also being told it could be more than the two to three acres we believe it to be.” Teelucksingh, a resident in the Cedros community and also employed with Trinmar further told Newsday formations which appeared in the sea in the past have been different to what is now being seen.

Newsday also spoke to Dr Glen Ramadharsingh, chairman of the Siparia Regional Corporation who said he and a team will visit the area tomorrow to get a first hand look and be better informed. “It is something we are monitoring as we are being told it can affect oil and gas exploration,” he said.

“This needs a proper investigation.”

The tyres of a vehicle travelling parallel to the barriers will ride up on the angled base of the barrier, before the vehicle makes contact with the concrete. I speak here from personal experience.

On the Beetham Highway in recent times, barriers have been left scattered haphazardly in a random pattern, thus posing a hazard to traffic.

Barriers should be installed connected end-to-end to guide any stray vehicle back in line safely. A vehicle impacting a three-ton concrete block will suffer severe damage, causing grave injury to occupants.

Newsday spoke with the team after the victory and Maharajh said, “The team started training together just two weeks ago and with us qualifying for the Central American and Caribbean (CAC) Games, through this race, hopefully we can take things to another level by hitting world standard times.” He continued, “This in itself is an achievement as we had an amazing ride and it feels good to be the top Caribbean country on Independence Day, so there is no better way to salute.” The veteran of the youthful team, Adam Alexander, added: “All of us here are really good friends and it is really a group of fun guys. We just transferred that energy on the track and this was the result.” Campbell, however, could not replicate his performance in the Men’s Scratch, finishing 13th overall in the category. The event was won by Argentine Hugo Velasquez who was followed by silver medallist Brayan Gomez of Columbia and Clever Martinez, representing Venezuela, riding into third. In the Men’s Keirin, Colombian Fabian Puerta copped the gold medal ahead of his Argentinian opponent Leandro Botasso while Flavio Cipriano claimed the bronze medal in the event.

The Women’s Team Pursuit saw the United States capturing the gold medal in a time of 3:24.94.

Mexico came second in a time of 3:28.85. Cuba (4:36.31) defeated Columbia (4:40.02) in the third place ride off to secure the bronze medal. The Canadians stole the gold medal in the Men’s equivalent by ousting the United States with their time of 4:02.37. USA only managed a time of 4:04.94 in the gold medal ride while Chile (4:09.31) cruised past their Argentine rivals (4:11.31) for the bronze.

It was not all smooth riding for TT and its fans who were left stunned when rider Keron Bramble and his bike went airborne into the crowd just before entering the back straight, during the final qualification round of the Men’s Scratch. Bramble swerved to avoid a collision with two other cyclists as they crashed into each other, forcing him to manoeuvre wide but that only sent him crashing into the railing and he pitched head first into the stands. He was then removed from the stands via a stretcher and rushed to the Couva Health Centre.

Yesterday, the TT CF confirmed he suffered no broken bones and was back at the NCC, where he was resting comfortably and viewing the event. However, due the injuries he sustained to his shoulder and torn muscle tissues, Bramble would not be competing in the remainder of the Pan Am Championships. The cycling tournament continues today at 10 am with entrance free to the public and this evening at 6 pm with an entrance fee of TT $50.

Last Sunday, Guaya saw their unbeaten run halted by Club Sando Moruga, who recorded a 1-0 win at the Grand Chemin Recreation Ground, Moruga.

Club Sando Moruga are ninth on the points standings, one place higher than Siparia.

And Guaya will be hoping that the support from their home fans, at the Guayaguayare Recreation Ground, will do the trick as they avoid a second straight loss to a lower-placed squad. This match is timed to begin at 4.30 pm.

Three games will kick off at 4 pm – Club Sando Moruga against Queen’s Park at the Grand Chemin Recreation Ground, Defence Force versus Police at the Hasely Crawford Stadium’s Training Field in Mucurapo, and Cunupia FC against WASA at the Larry Gomes Stadium, Arima.

Other League One matches on tomorrow’s agenda will take place in the sister isle Tobago. At the Canaan/Bon Accord Recreation Ground, 1976 Phoenix FC will oppose the University of Trinidad and Tobago (UTT ) from 5 pm while, an hour later, Bethel United FC will face off against FC Santa Rosa at the Mt Gomery Recreation Ground.

League Two leaders Prisons FC are on a bye, and either of these three teams (Central 500 Spartans, Perseverance Ball Runners and Petit Valley/Diego Martin United) can jump to the top spot today.

Central 500 Spartans and Petit Valley/Diego Martin United will square off at the Edinburgh 500 Recreation Ground, Chaguanas from 7 pm while Perseverance Ball Runners will entertain Harlem Strikers at the New Settlement Recreation Ground, Caroni.

The game at Caroni will kick off at 6 pm, the same time as the Marabella FCC-Youth Stars encounter, which will take place at Guaracara Park, Pointe-a-Pierre

Forde-John read to Ramlogan, the charges relating to allegations of witness tampering in 2014.

Ramlogan was not called on to plead. The charges stem from an allegation made by director of the Police Complaints Authority (PCA), David West that he (West) was asked to withdraw his witness statement in a defamation lawsuit Ramlogan had filed against then opposition leader Dr Keith Rowley for comments made about Section 34 and extradition proceedings involving businessmen Ishwar Galbaransingh and Steve Ferguson. West is alleging that Ramlogan, in a telephone interview on October 31, 2014, promised him he would be appointed PCA director if he withdrew from the lawsuit.

Ramlogan was detained by police on Tuesday morning at his home at Palmiste, San Fernando, taken to Police Headquarters in Port-of-Spain for questioning and released on Wednesday night after being charged and granted bail in the sum of $750,000.

Yesterday, Ramlogan’s attorney Pamela Elder SC asked to see the search warrant. The police prosecutor agreed to provide her with it at the next hearing.

Ramlogan left the court accompanied by his wife Nalini and attorneys including Gerald Ramdeen and Wayne Sturge.

“It took a very long time to have my day in court,” Ramlogan said.

“I remain confident that the truth shall set me free. I have no doubt that justice will prevail in this matter and that I will emerge victorious. I have every confidence in my legal team headed by Pamela Elder Senior Counsel, and we anxiously await the day in court when the people that laid these scurrilous allegations will enter the witness box and subject themselves to the cross-examination that will prevail.

“I was a bit flattered when I saw the extreme security measures this morning. Happily it wasn’t for me. I understand that another matter is in the court.

“It has been a very harrowing and distressing experience to be subjected to the execution of a search warrant by such a large contingent of police officers at my home. My primary concern now is for my young children and my family, and I intend to protect them and to ensure that this trial does not affect them.

“Other than that I intend to continue doing what I’ve always done, that is to fight for justice for the downtrodden and the underprivileged in Trinidad and Tobago. I expect to be back out to work at my law firm come Monday morning.”

Therefore, commentators will now be calling for the selection of any person, especially from their respective territory and the result will be name-calling, such as territorial bias and insularity.

There are presently, questions about the number of Barbadian cricketers on the WI tour of England, chosen by a Barbadian-led selection panel, according to the commentators. But Eldine Baptiste, Travis Dowlin and Lockhart Sebastien (three of four) are not Barbadians. As usual, no one suggests alternatives and, better yet, who should be removed from the team.

Without any criteria, such as the need to participate in the regional tournaments, these competitions will now be neglected and relegated to non-importance.

While two cricketers have jumped to immediately accept the opportunity to return to West Indies colours in the one-day format, others have declined until they have sufficient practice in the one-day game.

As the post-mortem continues following the First Test match loss in England, commentators, both regional and foreign, are quick to put forward names of players without recalling the last time they have played in a four/ five-day match — Chris Gayle, Dwayne Bravo, Darren Sammy.

Again I ask, which selector, a serious true selector, is willing to select players who have not played in that format of the sport within recent time? Further, why is the director of cricket, Jimmy Adams, and the lead coach, Stuart Law, and the captain, Jason Holder, not part of the selection panel? In fact, the director of cricket and the lead coach should be leading the selection panel, which should comprise of the sub-coaches, the captain and maybe others, if necessary.

And now that the West Indies has won the Second Test match, jump on the win wagon.

But remember, we still have an issue with the hierarchy of Cricket West Indies starting from Dave Cameron. After the First Test loss, Dr Allen Sammy of the TT Cricket Board stated that Cameron was not on the field of play and should not be blamed for the loss.

After the Second Test win, Cameron also was not on the field of play. Following the win, let them accept the kudos for the win but Cameron and others must go and must go now for West Indies cricket to improve.

But as we scramble to try to gain automatic selection for the 2019 World Cup, we will descend into permanent (not temporary) mayhem, forgetting about organised plans, if such exist, for development programmes.

Maybe, just maybe, one step forward, if we can get around the corner, but definitely three steps backwards.

PHILIP AYOUNG-CHEE via email

Knight Riders have an unassailable lead at the top of the standings with 16 points after earning eight wins and one loss.

Knight Riders will also welcome Shadab Khan back into the squad after the Pakistani had to return to Pakistan briefly for fitness and medical tests. The Tridents are in a keen contest with the Guyana Amazon Warriors to earn the fourth and final spot of the knockout phase.

Knight Riders will face the second placed team in qualifier one at Brian Lara Cricket Academy (BLCA) in Tarouba, on Tuesday, from 8 pm. Either Jamaica Tallawahs or St Kitts and Nevis Patriots will finish in second position.

Last night, Tallawahs were hoping to seal second place with a victory over Amazon Warriors in Jamaica.

The winner of qualifier one will qualify for the September 9 final at 9 pm. On Wednesday from 8 pm, the eliminator between the third place and fourth place teams will take place. The winner will play the loser of qualifier one in qualifier two on Thursday at 8 pm for a place in the final. All matches in the second phase of the tournament will be played at BLCA

As part of the Ministry of Tourism’s “Stay to get away” campaign several tours were organised to take the media to various tourist destinations.

This tour was guided by Courtenay “Bush Man” Rooks, managing director of Paria Springs Tours, who created the rappelling trend at the falls.

On the way, Rooks pointed out that there was a lot of fun things to do in TT and said he has been surfing, mountain biking, hiking and bird watching every year.

The journey to Avocat began at the Queen’s Park Savannah, Port of Spain. Arriving off the Arima, Blanchisseuse Road, the bus stopped at Pop’s House where the team picked up harnesses and helmets and began the physical 45-minute trek to the waterfall.

Soon, we were knee-high in the cold waters of the Marianne River, navigating through slippery rocks, logs and trees. We occasionally stopped to observe the beauty of the rainforest while Rooks pointed out intertwined trees, acting as a natural protection for the ecosystem in the event of a hurricane.

“What is fascinating about rainforests is many people think that the forest is here because of the rain, however, studies have shown that it is actually the forest which produces the rain,” Rooks said.

When we arrived at the base of the waterfall, we were greeted with a a downpour. The group strapped on their harnesses to prepare for the rappelling adventure. We began our crash course in rappelling as a rope and large tree became our practise pad. Meanwhile, Rooks hiked to the top of the 72-foot waterfall to fasten the ropes to the hooks. He had drilled and anchored hooks into the rocks himself almost two years ago after learning rappelling from a friend who teaches the technique in France.

While some were adventurous enough to climb to the top, others opted to stay at the base of the waterfall and enjoy the river experience.

The waterfall is surrounded by rocks and trees which provide a serene landscape for a relaxing swim in one of the clear shallow pools of the river. At the top, we all experienced moments of fear at the edge, while some reconsidered the adventure. Rooks was the first to rappel down the waterfall, showing the proper technique.

All anxiety was soon forgotten as one after the other we had our own rappelling adventure.

We all agreed that the first phase, which was a cautious climb down, was the most terrifying, however, after being swung under the cascading waterfall, the feeling of excitement took over. Those who were timid on their first try rushed back to the top to have another go at the rappelling experience.

The river-goers who met the team at the river were shocked to see rappelling being done and said that they wished that they could have joined in.

Rooks said he began rappelling at Avocat because he wanted people to get a different experience at the waterfalls. The youngest person to have rappelled was four while the eldest was 86.

to be headed by businessman Wilfred Espinet with Reynold Adjodhasingh as vice chairman, was chosen for its business experience as well as deep knowledge of Petrotrin. In addition to Espinet and Adjodhasingh.

the board comprises Nigel Edwards; Anthony Chan Tack; Eustace Nancis; Joel Harding; Linda Rajpaul; Randhir Rampersad and Selwyn Lashley, the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Energy and Energy Affairs. Rowley said that Petrotrin had run up huge debts which it was unable to pay and which had to be met by the Minister of Finance at a time when the minister was struggling to meet the other expenses which he had to deal with. He said the first of these debts comes due in 2019 – U.S $850 million in one payment – and another smaller payment due shortly afterwards. He said Petrotrin’s oil production has been falling considerably and its ageing infrastructure carries the risk of safety and the possibility of leaks polluting the Gulf of Paria and the Venezuelan coastline which he said would have huge consequences. He said the company’s dated refinery is refining crude at a loss at the current level of oil prices and that because of the company’s serious financial situation.

the Minister of Finance has been forced to pay for imports of crude oil to keep the refinery operating while it is losing money on each barrel of oil that it produces.

So said Minister of Sports and Youth Affairs Darryl Smith yesterday, in response to a Facebook post issued by national women’s 100-metre champion Michelle-Lee Ahye.

The 25-year-old Ahye, in a Facebook post on Wednesday, stressed that the TT’s women’s 4×100-metre relay team (Kelly- Ann Baptiste, Ahye, Reyare Thomas and Semoy Hackett), which earned bronze at the 2015 IAAF World Championships in Beijing, China, was yet to be recognised for their efforts but the gold-medal winning 2017 IAAF World Championships men’s 4x400m quartet (Jarrin Solomon, Jereem Richards, Machel Cedenio and Lalonde Gordon) was likely to gain recognition and rewards for their success last month in London, England.

Smith, in a telephone interview yesterday, said: “Since 2002, (after) the last national sporting policy (was implemented), we (have been) doing consultations across the country.

“We have a final draft which the Ministry’s technocrats are finalising now and it’s going to be taken to Cabinet in September (this month), where it can be approved,” he continued. “A major part of it will be elite athletes funding, the rewarding of athletes, the grassroots policy, the sports tourism and so on.

But the major part of it is the rewarding of athletes, and how we deal with elite athletes at the grassroots (level).” In her post, Ahye said, “Ok, so the guys 4x400m got gold at World champs this year, they got a lot of praises and probably going to get rewarded for it. Ok I understand its gold…

but back in 2015 the women 4x100m got bronze with a NR (national record) but mind you, that was the first women team to get a medal and up to this day, WE ARE STILL WAITING TO GET RECOGNIZED FOR THAT MEDAL. Smh (shaking my head) but they always recognize when the guys get a medal smh… I’m so over it… I’m really thinking hard about running for another country.” Smith pointed out, “Right now a lot of athletes are complaining how the current policy, which was there before we came (into office), is cumbersome and not user-friendly. We want to look at that.

“So once it’s presented and approved, the country will be blessed with a new policy,” the Minister continued. “I’m very excited about it and optimistic that, moving forward under this new policy that we can put this to bed for a while. We want to push the athletes to reach as far as possible as they can by supporting them, especially in these tough times.” He went on to add, “We’re also doing a youth policy as well and that’s going to be launching in 2018.” Asked if local athletes are so disgruntled by the state of affairs that they may want to switch allegiances, Smith replied, “If an athlete wants to migrate to a next country, for whatever reason, I can’t stop them (from) doing that. It’s a free world and people can make that choice.” Ahye featured in the women’s 100m at yesterday’s Diamond League meeting in Brussels, Belgium. She placed fourth in 11.07 seconds, the same time as Nigeria’s Blessing Okagbare-Ighoteguonor, but the Nigerian was adjudged third after a photo- finish.

Olympic 100m champ Elaine Thompson of Jamaica triumphed in 10.92 seconds, followed by Marie-Josee Ta Lou of Ivory Coast, who clocked 10.93.