Caribbean Cops
- • The Caribbean is comprised of more than 7,000 islands, islets, reefs and cays. There are thirteen sovereign countries, twelve dependent territories and two overseas departments.
- • According to a United Nations survey of crime trends, Jamaica has the fifth-highest per capita homicide rate in the world, with 49 murders per 100,000 people and trailing only Iraq, Venezuela, El Salvador and Honduras.
- • A local ordinance in Negril, Jamaica decrees that buildings may not be built any taller than palm trees.
- • In 1893 St. Elizabeth, Jamaica was the first town in the Caribbean to be supplied with electricity.
- • At least 11 languages are spoken in the Caribbean, including English, French, Spanish, Dutch, Patois and Papiamento (a Creole language with African, Dutch, Portuguese and Spanish roots).
- • Hurricane season in the Caribbean stretches from early June to the end of November, with the height of the season in August. Plan accordingly!
- • Cuba is the largest island in the Caribbean.
- • Almost 23 million visitors vacationed in the Caribbean in 2005, according to the Caribbean Tourism Organization.
- • The Federation of Saint Kitts and Nevis is the smallest independent country in the Caribbean at 104 square miles and a population of 39,000.
- • Only about two percent of the Caribbean's numerous islands are inhabited.
- • The Caribbean is home to both astounding wealth and crushing poverty. The Cayman Islands are a luxurious, world-renown tax haven while Haiti is one of the world's poorest countries.
- • Christmas was banned in Cuba until 1998 when the island was visited by Pope John Paul II.
- • With an area of only 37 square miles, the island of St- Martin/St. Maarten is the smallest landmass in the world to be divided between two countries. Its dual owners are the Dutch and French, who have shared the island for almost 350 years.
- • In 2003, The US Coast Guard patrolling the Caribbean netted a total of 136,865 pounds of cocaine worth more than $4 billion and arrested 283 drug smugglers.
- • Grenada was the first country to issue a commemorative postage stamp in honor of Elvis Presley.
- • More than 18 million cruise ship passengers arrived in the Caribbean in 2005 according to the Caribbean Tourist Organization.
- • The only foreign country George Washington ever visited was Barbados in 1751, which was a British territory at the time.
- • According to the World Travel and Tourism Council, tourism accounts for almost 15 percent of the total GDP in the Caribbean.
Shows
When drivers exceed the limit, the cops–and our cameras–catch it all.
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The rescues. The fights. The heat.
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Videos
A party girl has a cold beer but no pants.
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Underage drinkers get banned then get punchy.
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