Today, things are back to normal at the Cheddi Jagan International Airport and flights leaving Georgetown, Guyana, headed to New York City are flying on schedule. It's business as usual. And complacency appears to be the default response to an event that could have turned out quite badly.
On February 10, the Guyanese national authorities and the US Embassy indicated there was a terror "threat" to Caribbean Airlines. While the warning was vague and unspecified, it was serious enough that the US Embassy urged American citizens in Guyana to not use Caribbean Airlines for the next three days, and to make other travel arrangements.
Meanwhile authorities at the airport said they were implementing security measures, but asked the public to be on the lookout for any suspicious activities–which is a suggestion as unspecified as the alleged threat itself. A little too do-it-yourself when it comes to monitoring a possible act of terrorism.
News of the threat didn't make waves in the US and Canada, which is surprising since Caribbean Airlines flies to and from five major hubs–Toronto, Miami, Fort Lauderdale, Orlando and New York City. And those cities have large immigrant communities from the Caribbean, many of whom depend on the T&T-based airline to travel to the region.
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