On the first official working day of the year, among those who would have been hardest hit, were eating establishments in the mall’s food court which would have lost sales as the evacuation occurred during the lunch hour.

One owner told Newsday, “We will lose out in terms of sales, but there is nothing more important than being safe.” Jason Shields, Fire Sub-Station Officer of the Trinidad and Tobago Fire Service’s (TTFS’s) Headquarters at Wrightson Road, Port-of- Spain, told reporters at the scene of the leak on Chacon Street that the TTFS got a telephone call just after noon. To their credit, he said, the security at the mall already had water running on the tank. They were running the water on the top of the tank but the firemen discovered that the leak was at the bottom.

However, the precautionary measures taken by the mall’s security staff would have averted major damage. Persons who were passing, he said, would have observed the leak, which looked like vapour, and smelled it. LPG is an odourless gas but the stench agent placed in it would have caused persons to detect the leak. Ramco Industries Limited, the supplier of the LPG, was notified and its personnel arrived over an hour and a half later to take away the cylinder.

Meanwhile, the gas was allowed to escape with water being doused on it until Ramco technicians arrived and temporarily sealed the breach.

“We had to evacuate Town Centre Mall for everyone’s safety,” Shields said noting that even persons at the Fair Chance Racing Service, located on the other side of the street, were asked to vacate the building to minimise the risks by persons who may have been smoking. Among those closing their businesses until the cylinder was removed were Capital Plaza, Daily News Limited – publishers of Newsday, and Kenny’s Sports Store.

A section of Chacon Street was also closed to traffic.

Ramco confirmed that the tank was among others being used by businesses in the food court, Shields said.

He said that the malls were closed to persons, not only on Chacon Street, but to those also using the Frederick Street entrance.

If it was a 20-pound cylinder, he said, it could have been immersed in water. But in this case, it could not have been done, so the gas was allowed to be expelled until Ramco technicians arrived and temporarily sealed the breach from which the gas was escaping.

After the tank was temporarily sealed, it was transported back to Cross Crossing in San Fernando under police escort.

“Up until now the Association has not given me a dime,” Baptiste told Newsday yesterday from the Port-of-Spain-based office of the TTBWA where he threatened to stay until he is given some assurance about his dues.

“I talking to (Executive Officer) Mr Kenneth Surratt regularly about my money. He said that the ministry has to send over the money. He is telling me that I will get my money and I ain’t get no money,” he said.

“He told me that he has not heard from the ministry. I asked him to call the ministry. I am not leaving the office until I get something positive from him. It is up to them if they lock me up in here,” he said.

Frustrated at the long wait, Baptiste said, “Nobody knows what is going through my mind now.” He said he has a teenage daughter in school whose welfare he has to look after. All his savings, he said, are depleted.

Contacted on Baptiste’s plight, Surratt said that the TTBWA has been representing Baptiste’s cause to the Ministry of Social Development and Family Affairs. Baptiste was not the only former employee who is seeking gratuity, he said.

There are about three others.

The Association, he said, receives a subvention from Government and was not into income generation. Surratt said that the TTBWA has calculated Baptiste’s gratuity and last August submitted the request for the payment to the ministry but has had no response since.

“We could only pay when we get the approval and the money from the ministry to make the payout,” he said.

Nevertheless, he said, that he gave Baptiste a cheque yesterday representing “back pay” for the last period that he worked under the collective bargaining arrangement that the TTBWA has entered into.

The fire, which broke out at Church Street, Smart Avenue in Penal, left four persons homeless among them a prison officer.

Homeless are mother of six, Ann Hunte, 65, and her children Gavin Hunte, 39, Carol John, 29, and Alfred John, 26, who is a prison officer. Carol is employed with the Airport Authority.

Reports are the mother was at home alone at about 8 am when a neighbour alerted her about flames at the rooftop of the kitchen area. Hunte’s son, Anthony Hunte, who lives a short distance away, recalled that the flames quickly spread and destroyed the four bedroom concrete and wooden two-storey house.

It also spread to the neighbour’s house causing damage. Luckily residents who rushed to aid both families managed to contain the flames from completely destroying the house of the Dookie family.

“Everyone went to work so Mom was home alone. A neighbour shouted that there was fire on the roof. Everyone (residents) really tried to help but the pressure was just too high and the breeze was strong. We lost everything.

If it was a flood, we may have been able to dry some items but fire leaves you with nothing.

The problem now is finding a place to stay,” Anthony said.

He noted that the incident shook his mother so much that relatives rushed her to the Penal Health Centre to seek medical attention.

Again he praised residents for their efforts and said the family was very saddened to learn that the house was also damaged.

“There were no casualties.

Mom lost her sou-sou money in the fire too.

Marshall said he had written to the Attorney General on March 28, 2016, and November 28, 2016, appealing to him to address the issue which brought so much fear and discomfort to animals, the elderly, infirmed and infants.

He said the members of Animals 360 firmly believe the current legislation is not sufficient.

“We acknowledge and commend the actions of the Trinidad and Tobago Police Service on the night of December 31 , 2016, to quell the disturbances of a lawless society. This behaviour however, is now ingrained in our culture, rampant and difficult to police. It is incumbent upon the Government to act to pass legislation that facilitates safe, responsible and compassionate use of fireworks that can be enforced. In order to hold accountable those that do not comply with the law a means of identifying those that are in compliance as opposed to those that are not is required,” Marshall stated. He said that while the duration of the explosions on Old Year’s Night was not as bad as previous years, the intensity of the explosions were louder and more explosive.

Marshall said police response varied in different areas. He said while in some areas the response was “very good (polite and professional) “, in other areas the police were indifferent while some did not answer their telephones.

He said the extent of the lawlessness was impossible to police with missiles being launched incessantly, with the boom factor seeming more prevalent than the visual factor.

“This in itself is evidence of a disturbing trend amongst our population. We are not aware of any arrests,” he said.

Marshall proposed that there be a review of the legislation relevant to fireworks built around three pillars. These included that end users of fireworks must be licensed to discharge fireworks, and fireworks should only be imported by licensed importers or sold to individuals, corporations and other entities that have a licence to discharge fireworks.

Also, the days, times, events and locations permissible for the discharge of fireworks should be legislated.

He said Harrilal made the application on August 29, 2016 and that so far she has not had any formal response from Udecott.

However, Udecott denied that it had failed to respond to any request for information under the act and specifically that it had received any request for information from any Member of Parliament.

Udecott said that on August 29 it received a request from Harrilal of Princes Town and a second request a day later from Rishi Maharaj of an organisation called Disclosure Today based at Abercromby Street, Port-of- Spain.

Udecott said it responded to both requests within a month with letters dated September 26, 2016, providing the requested information in the form of a spreadsheet along with a full list of the contracts awarded at the date of the Freedom of Information Request. Udecott said the work on the academy was broken down into 19 packages and all the packages were tendered and awarded and provided a full list of the works, the contractor to whom the job was awarded and the cost of the project.

Yankarran ‘s sister, Surekha Yankarran said the Minister extended condolences on behalf of the Government and has promised to keep in con tact with the family in this time of grief.

On Monday night, several of the big names in classical singing held a vigil, singing religious songs in remembrance of Yankarran who passed away on Monday due to heart failure.

Well-known singers James Ramdass, Lily Ramcharan, Moonilal Gildhrie and Dubraj Persad were present at the home of Yankarran, at 55 Anand Yankarran Drive, Exchange Village, Couva.

Surekha and her sister Devika were at the home of their mother Moonimah Yankaran, 83, of Brickfield Village, Carapichaima yesterday.

Moonimah, who was extremely close to her youngest son (Anand), was too overcome with grief to speak to the media.

However, Surekha spoke on behalf of her mother saying that after losing husband (Isaac Yankaran — father of seven) at a very young age, her mother remained close to her children.

“My eldest brother Sham died five years ago and now Anand has left us,” Surekha said.

Rakesh Yankarran who is the elder brother of Anand, was in Canada performing when he learnt of his brother’s passing.

“Nothing can prepare you for news like this,” Rakesh said, adding that although he knew his brother was ailing, he did not know he would have left the world at such a young age. Rakesh described his brother as full of life and always ready to perform at short notice.

“He loved singing and composing and he spent his entire life doing one or the other,” Rakesh said.

The songs and music will continue on a nightly basis at the home of the deceased.

The funeral service will be held at 9.30 am tomorrow at Anand Yankarran Drive and the final service will be at the Waterloo Cremation Site.

The Yankarran family will host a cultural programme at the Waterloo cremation site

“I was deeply saddened to learn that the distinctive voice of Anand Yankarran, an accomplished chutney artiste, has been si- lenced by his passing.

Anand was a member of the well-known Yankarran family, recognised throughout the country and internationally for producing talented musicians and singers.” She said he learned from his famous father, Issac Yankarran, and brothers, and began singing with the family at an early age. He sang Indian classical music and then took up chutney, TT’s unique musical style that blends musical influences from the East and the West.

“He was always eager to assist in the development and promotion of local Indian culture,” she saluted.

“Anand was never shy about his art and wherever he performed he had audiences joining in and asking for more. He had a unique style and was a gifted performer.” She said his passing has left a void in the culture of TT.

“It is my hope that his music will continue to be enjoyed by future generations, and that our young people will look to Anand Yankarran’s music for inspiration in the years to come, continuing his legacy.

“On behalf of my family and my extended UNC family I extended deepest condolences to the Yankarran family.”

In the meantime, there is an excellent existing hotel in Tobago boasting Caribbean-wide recognition and acceptability which is winning awards with no special concessions from the government.

The Tobago tourism authorities spend hundreds of millions of dollars every year flying all over the world allegedly promoting the island while neighbouring islands with nowhere near the same expenditure continue to attract greater numbers of tourists than Tobago does.

As with everything else in our country, if at first you don’t succeed, spend more money, so long as it’s the government’s.

What the country refuses to recognize is that foreign exchange flows out of the country into the bank accounts of the wealthy, allegedly to purchase imported goods.

Not all of that money returns to the country, which is why it was necessary for the former Central Bank Governor to identify which entities are the greatest consumers of foreign exchange.

But, of course, it is working class people who must continue to make sacrifices and suffer the slings and arrows of outrageous criticism when they demand their just due.

Karan Maha birsingh Carapichaima

It is on record that Petrotrin employs a labour force that is ten times what is required to run an operation of its size. The OWTU has been holding TT to ransom since Independence and inflicting enormous punishment on the people of this country by its striking strategy with no respite in the offing.

Additionally the rest of the people do not get any dividends from its largest oil company harvesting the nation’s energy patrimony for the exclusive benefit of the members of the OWTU who already command astronomical wages beyond the opportunity cost of its labour.

The late Patrick Manning sought to break this OWTU strangle-hold on TT when he established the Caroni Liquid Fuel Facility near to the Caroni Cremation Site at a cost of $1.5 billion but without commissioning the requisite feasibility study. He intended to introduce a private sector management/operation of this fuel depot away from NP and therefore without any industrial strike opportunity for the OWTU to shut it down to leverage wage negotiations.

To date the facility is non-operational, has been assigned to NP and workers represented by OWTU again. The facility is deteriorating daily and may not be salvaged because rust has invaded the tanks and pipelines.

Except for the above facility and an occasional Defence Force intervention contingency plan, no serious attempt has been made to insulate the hapless and besieged population from the insidious and callous visitings of the OWTU. It is as if The Exchequer owes a perennial debt to the OWTU to satisfy their demands first and foremost while the rest of us wait as mendicants after the retiring OWTU’s President-Generals walk away with several million-dollar handshakes.

STEPHEN KANGAL Caroni

The WTI Crude Oil Price is $53.72 USD.

Brent Crude Oil is $56.13 USD.

TT’S Crude fetches a much lower price. The company involved is among the highest paid, highly political yet least productive in the country. At this present time zero, zero, zero is all that is available, plain talk bad manners. Are you going to riot? TT needs to be put first. Many workers have been sent home.

Do you care only about yourselves? The ‘’house slave and arkatia syndrome’’. There is panic buying at the gas stations. Whatever you buy will finish one day. Storing gas at home is not advised. It is toxic and highly flammable. The gas station owners after crying about small profits must be laughing all the way to all the banks.

Can the union members survive a strike? Have adequate measures been put in place? The protective services must be utilised effectively.

Strike if you must. Do what you have to. No pappyshow and mamaguy.

I humbly suggest from Jan 4 to March 1 both days inclusive. Just a gentle reminder Carnival is 27,28 February 2017.

We will overcome some day.

AV RAMPERSAD, Princes Town “So much could be said