La industria azucarera de Belize atraviesa una de sus peores temporadas en años, con una caída significativa en la producción a causa de una enfermedad causada por hongos filamentosos. Según el Ministro de Agricultura, José Abelardo Mai, la producción de caña ha disminuido en más de 140,000 toneladas, y existe el riesgo de que el país no alcance la meta anual de 900,000 toneladas.
El funcionario explicó que, mientras en 2024 se estimaba una producción de 1.19 millones de toneladas, este año la estimación se ha reducido a 1.045 millones, lo que representa una baja de 145,000 toneladas. Además, la cantidad real de caña entregada en 2024 fue de aproximadamente un millón de toneladas, y para este año, se estima que esa cifra caerá a 900,000 toneladas.
“Es peor de lo que esperábamos”, admitió Mai. “Hasta las seis de esta mañana, la cantidad de caña procesada fue de 859,625 toneladas. Así que ni siquiera hemos alcanzado la marca de 900,000 toneladas, y no creo que sea fácil lograrla. Si las lluvias continúan dos días más, dudo que la cosecha pueda continuar”.
A esta baja en la producción se suma una fuerte caída en los precios del producto. Mientras que anteriormente se pagaba $87 por tonelada, el precio ha descendido a solo $54, lo que representa un déficit de ingresos estimado en $53 millones para el sector.
La combinación de enfermedades, condiciones climáticas adversas y precios bajos ha puesto en una situación crítica a la industria azucarera del país, que durante décadas ha sido uno de los pilares de la economía rural en el norte de Belize. Las autoridades ahora enfrentan el desafío de buscar medidas de mitigación para evitar un mayor colapso en la producción y en los ingresos de miles de familias cañeras.
Una tragedia conmocionó a la comunidad de Hattieville el jueves por la mañana, cuando Tyrel Cardines, un estudiante de 16 años de la escuela secundaria Gwen Lizarraga, perdió la vida tras ser atropellado por un autobús de la compañía Floralia. El fatal accidente ocurrió cerca de la milla dieciséis en la autopista George Price, mientras el joven montaba su bicicleta en dirección a la ciudad de Belize.
De acuerdo con la Asistente Superintendente de Policía, Stacy Smith, la investigación inicial revela que Cardines giró bruscamente a la izquierda hacia el carril por donde transitaba el autobús, provocando la colisión. El conductor del vehículo, Yurde Salazar, ha sido notificado con una intención de enjuiciamiento mientras la investigación continúa. La oficial detalló que el autobús involucrado pertenece a la línea U-Town de Floralia.
Tyrel se dirigía a una tienda del área en el momento del accidente. Therese Jacobs, amiga de la familia, narró entre lágrimas cómo recibió la noticia. “Fue a la tienda, le pedí que comprara algo para mí. Lo estaba esperando que regresara cuando alguien corrió a mi puerta y me preguntó si conocía a Tyrel. Le dije que sí. Le dije que acababa de ir a la tienda. Cuando salí allí, vi a la multitud, y dije, no, no, no, no. No me lo esperaba”, recordó con dolor.
Horas antes del trágico suceso, Tyrel había estado compartiendo con amigos de su iglesia, lo que subraya su carácter devoto y cercano a su comunidad. Su madre, Marilee Cardines, visiblemente afectada, hizo un llamado urgente a las autoridades para que refuercen el control sobre los conductores del transporte público. “Tránsito debe actuar contra estos autobuses y sus conductores, porque a ellos no les importa. ¿Saben cuántas vidas tienen en sus manos cada día? Demasiadas. Esto no es la primera vez. Mi hijo no es el único que ha sido atropellado ahí. Al menos cinco personas más de Hattieville han sido atropellados en ese mismo lugar por conductores imprudentes”, denunció.
La comunidad, aún en estado de shock, exige respuestas y acciones concretas para evitar que más vidas se pierdan en circunstancias similares. La tragedia de Tyrel ha reavivado los llamados a una mayor seguridad vial en la autopista George Price y a la rendición de cuentas por parte de los operadores del transporte público.
Tonight, heartbreak grips the Hattieville community following the tragic loss of a young life along the George Price Highway. Sixteen-year-old Tyrel Cardines, a student of Gwen Lizarraga High School, known for his faith and love for his community, was struck and killed by a Floralia bus while riding his bicycle. The impact threw him onto the pavement, causing fatal injuries. Tyrel’s sudden death has left his family and neighbors in mourning, and it’s also reignited public concern over road safety and the responsibility of drivers on our highways. News Five’s Britney Gordon has more on this devastating incident and the growing calls for accountability.
Britney Gordon, Reporting
Tragedy struck just before eleven this morning near mile sixteen on the George Price Highway. Sixteen-year-old Tyrel Cardines, a young student riding a bicycle, lost his life in a devastating collision with a Floralia bus. The impact threw him onto the pavement, causing fatal injuries that have left a community in mourning. As the police continue their investigation, Assistant Superintendent Stacy Smith shares more details about the heartbreaking incident.
Stacy Smith
ASP Stacy Smith, Staff Officer
“Police have issued a notice of intended prosecution Salazar the driver of a U-Town bus belonging to Floralia Bus Company that was involved in a fatal traffic accident, which claimed the life of sixteen-year-old Tyrel Cardines. A student of Hattiville Village, Belize District, the accident occurred at approximately 10:30 AM today, nineteenth of June, 2025, between miles sixteen and seventeen on the George Price Highway. Initial investigation revealed that Cardines was riding a bicycle from the direction of Hattieville to Belize City and it is alleged that he abruptly made a left turn onto the highway into the part of the bus that was traveling to Belize City when the fatal collision occurred. Police investigation continues.”
Tyrel Cardines was on his way to the store when he was hit. Long-time family friend, Therese Jacobs, was one of the last people to see Tyrel alive.
Therese Jacobs
Therese Jacobs, Family Friend
“He said Nana, I’m going to the store. Go buy something. I said, okay, we’ll buy something for me. And he went to the store. So I was here, didn’t expect, you know, someone going to my gate and he said, Ms. Therese do you know Tyrel? I said, yes. I said he just went to the store and he just did his hand. When I went out there, I see the crowd, and I said, no, no, no, no. You know, but I didn’t expect it. I didn’t expect it.”
Just hours before the fatal accident, Tyrel was spending time with friends from church, enjoying the kind of carefree moments every teenager deserves. He was expected home later that day to attend a graduation with his family. But sadly, he never made it. His mother, still reeling from the loss, says Tyrel was adored by everyone who knew him, a kind soul whose absence is already deeply felt.
Marilee Cardines
Marilee Cardines, Mother of Deceased
“My baby kind, loving, humble. Da wa loving person. Dat da why everybody love ah. Cause he sweet. Everybody da aunty and uncle. So when he see you do come he di come with lotta love and kisses. Mi love, da he name for me, mi love.”
As the Hattieville community continues to mourn the tragic loss of sixteen-year-old Tyrel Cardines, his mother is speaking out, not just in grief, but in a call for change. She says Tyrel wasn’t a reckless rider. He was careful, always looking both ways before crossing the highway. Now, she’s urging the traffic department to step up enforcement of road safety traffic laws, hoping no other family has to endure the pain she’s now facing. Her plea adds to growing public concern over accountability on our roads.
Tyrel
Marilee Cardines
“Traffic need fi get down pan ney buses and ney bus driver cuz ney no got wa care. You know how much people life ney have inna ney hand everyday? Lotta people. This da no di first time. My son da no the only one weh get knock down there. Bout five more people from Hattieville get knock down right da dat same spoke sake of careless driver. When ney come round dat curve ney come and da and da speed so ney no got time fi stop.”
The third-form student was an active member of his community and church. Jacobs described Tyrel as having an overflowing amount of love to share.
Therese Jacobs
“He joined me after with devotion, and he said, nana, I have two mother. I said, aha?. He said, I have my mom. And I have you, I said, nuhuh, you have your mom and you have your nana. And he laughed and he put his hands around me and he kissed me. And that brings back strong memory to me because of who he is and words. Some of his last words was, Nana, I love you.”
Although Marilee is grieving, she is determined to be brave for her two small children and work through the heartbreak together.
Marilee Cardines
“It just hurt. You back your baby inna your belly fi nine months. You go through the pain fi have ah, you go through the pain as a single mother fi raise your baby. And somebody just cime tek a weh like that, It hurt, But I have to be strong fi mind my next two baby cause da no only he one. I have to be strong fi the next two.”
Tyrel’s death dealt an indescribable blow to his loved ones, but his family is finding comfort in Tyrel’s dedication to his faith and the years he spent spreading kindness and love to all who knew him. Britney Gordon for News Five.
Several witnesses provided reports of the incident.
It’s the kind of news every parent hopes for, a missing child found safe. Thirteen-year-old Lissy Suntecun is back with her family today after three agonizing days of uncertainty. She vanished on Monday afternoon after leaving school, and for days, her loved ones had only one clue: a white pickup truck seen near the school. In a desperate search for answers, Lissy’s father took matters into his own hands and his determination paid off. He tracked down the vehicle in August Pine Ridge, leading police to a shocking discovery: Lissy was safe, but in the company of a relative who never informed her parents. Tonight, we hear from police and Lissy’s grandmother, Oralia Rosado, as the family breathes a sigh of relief.
Stacy Smith
ASP Stacy Smith, Staff Officer
“On Wednesday, eighteenth June, 2025, at approximately elevenPM police visited a residence in Guinea Grass Village, Orange Walk District, where Lissy Suntecun, a thirteen-year-old student of Guatemala, nationality was located. Suntecun, who attends a school in the Cayo district was reported missing on Monday sixteenth June, 2025, after she had not returned for the afternoon session of her classes. Police have since placed Suntecun who is in apparent good health in the care of the Department of Human Services. Three persons have been detained in connection to this incident, and a file will be forwarded to the office of the director of public prosecution for their directives.”
On the Phone: Oralia Rosado, Grandmother of Lissy Sentecun
“Yesterday we seeing about the car, my son went to August Pine Ridge. The same person that I was saying in the media that was the aunt if the mom, she was livening in August Pine Ridge. And the police take her and she’s saying no, I no have it. I no have it. But then somebody send a picture of our daughter and police went to see the daughter but she saying no. My son arrived in August Pine Ridge. He found the car and te we went to report to the police.”
Paul Lopez
“And based on his report, police went to the location?”
Oralia Rosado
“Yes because at like two o’clock in the morning, I call him saying, where are you. And he tell me I’m going back mom, I have already seen the car, I have already report. The police will do its work now.”
Lissy is now in the care of the Human Services Department.
It was a powerful show of unity today in Belize City, as the National Trade Union Congress of Belize brought together a coalition of voices not seen in years. At least nine unions packed the room, and seven took the mic, each one laying out the challenges their members face, from stevedores and university staff to teachers and public servants. But before the individual concerns were aired, NTUCB President Ella Waight set the tone, delivering a strong message to the Briceño Administration: stop the attacks on union leaders. It was a press conference that made it clear—Belize’s unions are standing together, and they’re ready to be heard.
Ella Waight
Ella Waight, President, NTUCB
“ The government of Belize must immediately cease the politicization of actions taken by union leaders and put an end to the personal attacks on their integrity. Union leaders are elected representatives of working people, not political pawns. The attempt to undermine their character for political gain not only weakens the democratic voice of workers. But also erodes public trust in fair labor practices. This pattern of scapegoating is a dangerous distraction from the real issues facing our workforce and our workers, and an attempt to put an afront to the principles of justice, dignity, and collective bargaining. Responsible leadership demands respectful dialogue, not character assassination. If this, if this does not stop immediately, NUCB will be submitting a case to the ILO Standards Application Committee that is enough.”
The proposed four percent salary adjustment from the government isn’t sitting well with the unions, and now we know why. President of the Belize National Teachers Union, Nadia Caliz, is raising red flags over the fine print. According to the union, accepting that four percent bump would also mean agreeing to a contributory pension scheme and pushing retirement to age sixty-five. It’s a package deal the unions say they simply can’t accept. Here’s more on what’s fueling their firm rejection.
Nadia Caliz, President, Belize National Teachers Union
“ I want to say to educators in this room that early retirement is fifty, voluntary retirement is fifty-five, and mandatory retirement is sixty and I’m touching the educators for right now. Now, if this rule changes, then you’re looking at that voluntary retirement being removed to everything being mandatory at sixty, but one of the reasons why we disagree with the blanket sixty-year-old that they are proposing is because different employment or different jobs require certain physical and mental capabilities. So imagine a, a soldier, sixty years old, they need certain stamina. And what exists in Belize today ,what currently exists in Belize today is that our military personnel, our military personnel, they have a different retirement rate or age. They have a different pension act, so it differs. So what we need to need government to say to us, are we going to put everybody at sixty. What is going on, and this is the reason why we object to contributory pension being the condition under which we are going to accept any salary, advance or adjustment, I must say, salary adjustment. Now, as sister Sharon said, we don’t know if it’s a scheme. We don’t know if it’s a fund we don’t know. What we do know is that if we’re talking about contributions, we don’t want our monies in the government. Consolidated revenue fund.”
At today’s NTUCB press conference, Public Service Union President Dean Flowers came ready, with receipts. Ahead of the event, Flowers did some digging into government spending, and what he found is raising eyebrows. From building rentals to vehicle purchases and even housing and entertainment allowances, the numbers tell a story that’s hard to ignore. While he admits some of these costs are necessary, Flowers says the amounts being spent raise more questions than answers. And when it comes to office space rentals—he’s calling for transparency. Here’s what he had to say.
Dean Flowers, President, Public Service Union
“Topping the list for the highest monthly rental is the Immigration and Nationality Department, which falls under the Prime Minister’s Ministry and they’re paying twenty-two thousand to a certain landowner. And we must ask ourselves, is that the office in Belize City? Is that the office in Belmopan? And if it’s the office in Belmopan I believe that we would have already, which is a much more beautiful building if I can say that, compared to the office in Belize City. I can tell you that building, the price of that building, the monthly rent for that building was never twenty-thousand under the previous administration. The Ministry of Health and Wellness, I thought, I know we have to pay a little bit of house rent for the Cuban brigades and so on, but they are renting a building somewhere for eighteen thousand dollars and we need to know who’s getting that money. The Ministry of Public Utilities, seventeen thousand dollars a month. This is monthly. Ministry of Finance and Home Affairs, I guess they’re combining there. We see a contract here for fifteen thousand eight hundred dollars. Ministry of Human Development, they’re paying fifteen thousand dollars. Blue Economy, they are paying fourteen thousand dollars for one of their buildings, fourteen thousand dollars, Ministry of Rural Transformation fourteen thousand dollars. And this is the shocker, the Ministry of Youth also has one here for fourteen thousand dollars. I’m trying to figure out which building house the Ministry of Youth, that is worth fourteen thousand dollars. And there are others for some twelve thousand dollars, and ten thousand dollars. I see the Attorney General here for twelve thousand dollars. I assume that’s the one in Belmopan which is a very beautiful building and very spacious. A blue economy again for another ten thousand dollars.”
We also heard from Sharon Fraser, President of the Association of Public Service Senior Managers, who laid out a timeline of the Joint Union Negotiation Team’s talks with the government. According to Fraser, the unions have never been rigid about the eight-point-five percent salary cut. But what they can’t accept are the conditions tied to the government’s latest proposal. She says it’s not just about numbers; it’s about fairness. Here’s more from her remarks at today’s press conference.
Sharon Fraser, President, Association of Public Service Senior Managers
“They indicated that after this long speech about being responsible and we need to look after everybody, not just public sector workers, we got to the point where we were offered four, four, no, it increased by one to four percent for October this year. And the other four and a half in the following two years. So three years, nothing changed. Well, that’s what was the offer. And the issue with the increment remained the same. But what caught our eyes was the fact that in the letter and in bold capital letters, it said subject to, and I heard, and I have respect for the Minister of State, and I heard him on another media, in a media house saying that, in fact, I got it wrong because if you are putting “subject to” in capital letters, it is to catch my attention and it’s to tell me that everything that follows, it depends on. But maybe, it was different law school I gone. Maybe, because he said that is not the case. It was subject to pension reform. So, to get any of the things above, which was the four and the four and a half and the increments, it was subject to pension reform.”
The call for pension justice continues at Belize’s flagship hospital. The Karl Heusner Memorial Hospital Authority Workers Union is once again urging the government to establish a pension scheme for its members, over three hundred of whom face retirement without one. We’ve been following this story closely, and tonight, there’s a new development. The union has officially rejected the government’s latest proposal, delivered just hours after their June fifth meeting. Now, all eyes are on a second letter from the government, one that could determine the next steps in this ongoing fight for financial security.
Andrew Baird, President, KHMHWU
”Immediately the night of June fifth, our union met with our membership. We tabled what was presented to us. Right after the meeting, we wrote a letter to the chair, copied to all the government officials that was a part of the meeting, to state or dissatisfaction with the letter written by the chairman and that and our condemnation to such letter. It was promised to us that they will go back to the Prime Minister and the other counterparts of the government to reconsider the four percent and come back to us June twentieth, which is tomorrow, with their reconsideration of the four percent. So, we are waiting for tomorrow eleven fifty-nine p.m. Now ,let me make this clear. At no point in time did our members give us a mandate to remove our plan, tier action, industrial action from the table. We still continue our work to rule at this time and wearing our T-shirts. Tomorrow can determine whether we move forward with the other affairs.”
Former Minister of Education Francis Fonseca says the unions have rejected the latest offer, but there’s still hope for a resolution. With new proposals heading to Cabinet next week, Fonseca is urging a return to the table—and a move away from disruptive actions like airport closures, which he says hurt everyone, from public officers to the tourism industry. Here’s more on what he had to say.
Francis Fonseca, Former Minister of Education
“The unions, as you know, have rejected the last offer made by the Government of Belize. Our negotiating team, the cabinet subcommittee, met earlier this week to discuss certain proposals that we want to make to Cabinet. We will be making those proposals to Cabinet on Tuesday next week, and based on that discussion with Cabinet and whatever instructions we are given by Cabinet, then we will be scheduling a meeting with the JUNT for us to move the process forward in terms of whatever instructions we are given by Cabinet. So we are very hopeful that, based on our own discussions, that those proposals will be well received, that they will be met with good faith, and that we will have an opportunity for an early resolution of this matter. I’ve always maintained that we have in place a structure and a mechanism for the resolution of these disputes. We have always been able to dialogue around the table. In my view, it is very unfortunate, very disappointing that the unions have moved away from the table and are not, you know, resolving these issues in good faith, in a respectful way around the table. So, I think, certainly the efforts to close or disrupt activities at the airport, that cannot be acceptable to anyone and that is not in the interest of anybody, not in the interest of the teachers, the public officers and not in the interest of the tourism industry.”
