Today in History: May 23

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NASSAU, BAHAMAS – On this day in Bahamian history in 1901 was the first general meeting of the Imperial Order Daughters of the Empire Bahamas took place.

The meeting was held at St. Andrew’s Hall, in Nassau. The IODE is a women’s charitable organization based in Canada and provides scholarships, bursaries, book prizes and other philanthropic and educational projects in various communities.

In 1924 Preston Hilton Albury was born in Governor’s Harbour, Eleuthera.

Albury was an administrator, engineer, trade unionist and politician.

During the 1950s Albury became politically active and joined the Progressive Liberal Party and ran as a candidate for the party in the 1962 election in his native Eleuthera but was defeated. The following general election in 1967 he won a seat and became a member of parliament.

In January 1971 he became the chairman of The Bahamas Electricity Corporation a position he held until 1st February 1974.

On 9th March 1980, Albury died at the age of 56. The high school in Rock Sound, Eleuthera was since named in his honor.

In 1997 The Bahamas and the People’s Republic of China established diplomatic relations days after it had severed ties with Taiwan. Less than two months later, the Chinese government opened up an Embassy in Nassau.

15 years later on this day in 2012 was the opening of Parliament following the Progressive Liberal Party’s landslide win at the polls. That year, then Governor-General Sir Arthur Foulkes delivered the speech from the throne which focused on the party’s first 100 day plan.

In 2013 was news of widespread flooding three days after a severe weather warning ended more than three inches of rain led to flooded homes in Pinewood Gardens that had residents bailing water for more than two days. Some of them criticizing NEMA for not springing to action sooner.

May 23rd 2020 – the country’s covid-19 cases hit triple digits with three new positive cases taking the total number to 100.

At the time there were only 11 covid-19 related deaths and 45 recoveries.

By May 23rd, 2021 the ministry of health’s COVID-19 dashboard showed that more than 6,000 Bahamians had been fully-vaccinated.

A total of 50,242 doses had been administered at the time.

And finally in 2022 an autopsy and toxicology reports showed three U.S. Tourists who were found dead weeks earlier at Sandals Resort in Exuma died from carbon monoxide poisoning.

Michael and Robbie Phillips of Tennessee, and Florida resident Vincent Chiarella were all found dead inside neighboring villas at the resort.