It took only a few minutes for the flames to set ablaze and a few more minutes for the fire department to bring the fire under control and totally out it in an hour and a half but it will take the Lara family many years to recuperate the belongings that they have worked for a life-time.

The fire alarm was given by helpful neighbors and it took the fire department a few minutes to get to the scene and rescue what they could. The first house was totally engulfed by flames while the other went ablaze even before they were able to set up equipment. So now the commander’s order was to prevent the fire from spreading by bringing those two under control.

Despite a fairly strongly wind blowing the able department was able to complete their mission in just over an hour. Two neighboring homes were seriously threatened but the fast action and good decisions prevent a major catastrophe.

At the very beginning of the inferno desperate mother, Grace Westby, locked herself with her baby into a closet to save their lives. After her young girl gave the notice to the firemen, the broke a windo and the brave mother courageously managed to jump out the front window to save her life and the life of her baby. Lamentably the baby had received first degree burns to the face and third degree burns to her arms and had inhaled toxic fumes. She had to receive immediate treatment at the polyclinic. Due to the severity of the injuries baby Tiarra Shantaia Lara had to be transported by airplane to the KHMH for further medical attention.

Kudos is in order to the Fire Department, the Police and willing volunteers who risked their lives to prevent a major disaster. Of course as usual there were whole lots of intrusive and inquisitive people preventing the fire fighters from doing their job.

Reliable reports indicate that the Lara Family lost their total belongings which unfortunately were not insured. It is expected that service and charity organizations and local authorities will join forces to raise funds to alleviate a family in need. And it is expected, of course, that San Pedro will extend a giving hand to a dear friend “Reds” who is always there for others.

In the days when pirates existed and many sailors were exploring the new world, many of those ships were either caught in bad weather and wrecked or possible pirate invasions of other ships caused many battles out at sea leaving many shipwrecks abound all over the Atlantic, Pacific and even the Caribbean Sea.

The Northern part of the island has its fair number of shipwrecks mostly in the Rocky Point and Habaneros-Palmeros Area and a few weeks ago the office of Ambergris Today got a lead on a possible shipwreck on North Ambergris Caye about a mile off Sueño Del Mar, and that possible treasures might have already been sold both locally and abroad.

We contacted Miguel Alamilla of the Hol Chan Marine Reserve who he assured us that they had gotten numerous reports about the shipwreck and that they had been told that both residents of the area and fishermen had been excavating the shipwreck. He also mentioned that they visited the area and that the piece of the vessel has been washed up on the shore and that nothing much was found on the site. They are monitoring area since it is near the Bacalar Chico Reserve.

To further our investigation, we contacted Dr. Jaime Awe of the Institute of Archeology at the National Institute of Culture and Heritage (NICH), who explained to us that he was on the island from February 15 to February 17. He visited the wreck site along with San Pedro Police as he had gotten reports of people looting the precious remains of the shipwreck.

“The police were able to get a search warrant and we checked out several of the homes in the vicinity for any artifacts that might have been removed but to no avail,” commented Mr. Awe to Ambergris Today. “We are currently trying to get assistance from government to go back at the location to properly identify the shipwreck and try to recover as many items as we possibly can”. Mr. Awe also mentioned that the police are making constant checks on the area so as to prevent any looting in the area. Charges will be made to those caught doing any legal activities.

There are several ship wrecks off the coast of Belize; about three cannons and an anchor were retrieved from the ship wreck at Rocky Point and the oldest shipwreck site is the Habaneros-Palmeros off Ambergris Caye. Presently there are three anchors, three large cannons and one breach loading swivel cannon still on the reef.

Scattered in the fore-reef there are much encrusted ballast rocks, whose path leads into the reef itself and limitedly into the leeward side of the reef. One of these cannon is in water about 10" deep. A few silver coins were found on this wreck that dated between 1630 and 1650. The name of this ship is unknown, but some of its explorers suggest that it may have been the "Oxford", one of Sir Henry Morgan's privateers. Other shipwrecks can be found at Lighthouse Reef, Turneff Island, Glover’s reef, Sittee River and St. George’s Caye.

Two weeks ago at the Angel Coral Street inauguration Mayor Elsa Paz officially presented the long awaited street sweeper for the island which was obtained through the Sister-City agreement with Wilmington, North Carolina. Today, the street sweeper is full operating and maintaining the streets of La Isla Bonita clean.

The street sweeper has been scheduled to clean the streets of town between the hours of 3:00 a.m. and 6:00 a.m. The operator of the street sweeper tells us that it picks up most items such as sand, broken glass, light metals and plastics. Even though we have a new street sweeping machine, the public is strongly advised not to throw their garbage on the street but to properly dispose of it in garbage bins.

The San Pedro Town Council would like to ask all vehicle owners to kindly remove their vehicles from the streets at night and properly park them inside their yards of parking areas. The SPTC also mentioned that they will soon be enforcing the law in which vehicles will not be allowed to remain on the streets overnight since this will obstruct the cleaning process.

Town Administrator, Patricia Tillett, informed Ambergris Today that the Town Council recently received another street sweeper to performer smaller duties as it is a smaller machine. The sweeper is a bit larger than a golf cart and will be used mostly for the side-walks and the sweeping of the Central Park and Friendship Park. This kind donation was made by James Pruit of Island Construction.

As for the men who were doing the job of sweeping the streets, the Mayor assured that they will not lose their job and will be re-assigned to other tasks.

Leonardo DiCaprio has recently unveiled his plans for his private island, Blackadore Caye in Belize, just west of Ambergris Caye. The renowned actor and environmental activist has teamed up with the Four Seasons to develop the 104-acre tropical private island into a conscientious exclusive eco-luxury resort.

DiCaprio had originally discovered the island on a vacation in 2004 while staying at the ultra-luxury resort Cayo Espanto. DiCaprio purchased the private island with Cayo Espanto owner Jeff Gram in 2005 for a reported $1.75 million. The two have now begun drawing up plans with Four Seasons to create a five-star luxury resort based on sustainable design and environmental conservation.

Blackadore Caye is located off the coast of Belize and is situated between the Belize coast and the famous vacation hotspot Ambergris Caye. The private island resort will be designed around the environment and carefully integrated to the unspoiled surroundings. DiCaprio intends for the eco-luxury private island to serve as a benchmark for testing innovative “green” technology and natural energy sources such as water, sun and wind.

The eco luxury private island resort is reportedly designed to include an 80-room luxury hotel with private beach villas, spa services and fine dining restaurants. The private island will also include a solar-paneled airstrip to provide additional power. The private island will also include an exclusive collection of private villas with private pools and direct access to beaches. These discreet and extremely lavish private villas will cater to an A-list clientele and possibly several famous friends of DiCaprio.

“Do you solemnly swear to work for the general interest of San Pedro and to abide by the constitution of our country and the laws of Belize and San Pedro?” With these words, with a holy Bible in their left hands, and the right hand raised in approval as the solemn and sacred oath was taken, Mayor Elsa Paz and six other councilors were sworn into office by Town Administrator Mrs. Patricia Tillett for the period 2009-2012 in front of a modest gathering at Central park which included relatives, invited guests, a few Justices of the Peace and sympathizers. There were no long speeches as the campaign is over- only a promise to being more progress to San Pedro. Both Minister Heredia and Mayor Paz re-iterated their commitment for projects like more cobblestone streets, a new sports complex at Saca Chispas Plaza, Sports, Education, and the San Mateo rehabilitation from its dreadful conditions.

And after a blessing from Lay Minister Lucio Guerrero, the vote of thanks by Councilor Joe Elijio, and a final adieu and good-night by a well-spoken Mistress of Ceremonies, the distinguished Ms. Pamela Zetina, the program came to an end and it was time to congratulate the members of the San Pedro Town Council. The complete team includes, Mr. Joe Elijio, Nano Guerrero, Pablo Ico, Nesto Gomez, Severo Guerrero and Juan Alamilla.

International Game Fish Association has approved Tres Pescado Slam Tournament as an Inshore World Championship qualifier event. - August 20, 21, and 22, 2009 is the date for the first Belize fly fishing tournament, Tres Pescado Slam Tournament, involving all three of the grand slam species Belize is known for.

Another first is the type of tournament, a “Catch and Release” only event. And yet another is the data collection that will take place during the tournament to establish a baseline for the three grand slam species - the data collection for this event is modeled after the successful Florida Keys bonefish census. As if that weren’t enough, the Tres Pescado Slam Tournament has received approval as one of the qualifying events for the International Game Fish Association (IGFA) Inshore World Championships.

What does this mean? In the fly fishing world of tournaments there is no single tournament that garners more respect and prestige than the IGFA Inshore World Championships. In June each year the top qualifier event champions from around the globe gather in Islamorada, Florida to compete for the top honors and title of World Champion.

To qualify for a chance at being invited to this World Championship event, an angler must first qualify by winning one of the world qualifying tournaments held in the USA, Bahamas, Australia, and now in Belize.

The Tres Pescado Slam Tournament has received approval of their application to be one of the world class qualifying events whereby anglers from around the world can come and if lucky enough to win the event title, qualify for an invitation to the 2010 IGFA Inshore World Championships. All anglers must qualify in the prior year to receive an invitation to the World Championships.

In addition, ESPN Outdoors selects various qualifying event locations to film for their ESPN Outdoors Saltwater Series shown on ESPN2 and on their ESPNoutdoor.com multimedia platforms. Being new as a qualifying event Belize can only hope to have coverage like this but then again, Belize is the rare jewel among the string of saltwater fly fishing events.

Sandy Moret, three-time Gold Cup Tarpon Champ and IGFA Inshore World Championship Director, stated it best in the IGFA approval letter: "Fantastic... you are approved with flying colors. It is wonderful to see that lodge owners, guides and anglers of Belize have made such a giant step setting a leadership example for all of the Caribbean to envy. I am in hopes that Florida will follow suit with permit soon."

To become part of this tournament and join in on the global stage of this world class event please go to www.tres-pescado-tournament.org and learn more about the available sponsorships and teams. This is a non-profit event with all proceeds going to support the health of the 3 grand slam fish.