(26th June). ‘Cancela Is A Rats Nest – There are prisoners who complain to the guards about rats in the cells’. A plague of rats is ravaging the zone around the prison in Cancela. The situation is not new, and as well as prisoners complaining, so is the trade union representing the guards. Apart from a programme of rat extermination that is seemingly not working, nothing is being done. The problem was first reported 2 years ago to the prison management. Some prison guards live in accommodation on site, and they are also affected.
‘Poor Entitled To Dine For Free’. From next September, the poorest people will be dining on the premises of the Association for the Protection of the Poor for free. As well as a daily lunch and an evening snack, they will also be served meals on Sundays, as announced by the regional office of the Secretary for Social Affairs, Francisco Ramos. The government has taken a lot of criticism recently, through opposition parties and the church, for not doing enough to take care of the poor.
‘Machico Without Flag – The council of Machico has requested the Regional Directorate of the Environment to postpone the flying of the Blue Flag until next year’. According to information from a council, the decision is due to the fact that works are being undertaken to reinforce the foundations of a river wall, which may cause the reduction of water quality to standards below those required by the European Union.
(25th June). ‘Direct Flight To Cape Verde Cancelled By TACV – The new international airport in São Vicente is not yet approved’. Following a report here a few days ago about the new scheduled flight between Cape Verde and Madeira, the airline TACV announced on Wednesday that the plans had now been cancelled. The service was due to start next month, with flights and holidays already on sale here. To blame are delays in the works for widening and strengthening of the runway over there, and hence not yet being properly certified. The approval will take place only at the end of the work and after an international inspection to ensure that new infrastructure meets all the parameters required for an international operation, particularly to receive aircraft the size of those that would be used in the Madeira operation, the Boeing 757-200.
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(24th June). ‘Heliatlantis Restarts Services With A Smaller Helicopter – The company has started a partnership with Helibravo for the Madeira operation’. The service will start again next weekend to offer charter flights and other services (aerial imagery and inter-island taxi). Helibravo is based in Lisbon, and that company will have full responsibility for the operational performance of Heliatlantis. The helicopter to be used is a Robinson 44 Clipper, manufactured in the USA. It is several years old, but much newer than the 16 year old craft it replaces and more economical to operate. As you can see from the picture, it has already been painted with it’s new livery. The old craft was withdrawn after being taken away for repairs, and due to less business and the loss of government funding. As a result charter prices should be lower. The old craft will now be used for tourist flights over the city of Lisbon. However, the full terms of the agreement are still being negotiated.
