of an elderly woman who was beaten by machete-wielding robbers in her own home.

Victim Mary Pickles, 78, said our seemingly sedate Island was becoming violent -- a fact not lost on the Canadian authors of the Boycott Bermuda website who were angry about the collapsed Rebecca Middleton murder case.

However the mood lightened for the controversial People's Holiday on January 5 which was held to celebrate the Progressive Labour Party's stunning election victory two months earlier. Thousands gathered to hear Premier Jennifer Smith deliver an upbeat message for Bermuda's youth.

But Bermuda's youth themselves hit the headlines for the wrong reasons when a schoolgirl stabbed another schoolgirl at CedarBridge Academy.

A crisis was avoided when 15 fire trucks rushed to the airport after a plane with a crippled engine was set to land. However just 80 miles out from the island the Boeing 767-300 got its other engine working, averting a possible tragedy.

It is not only planes that spend their time getting high -- a survey by the National Drug Commission finds nine out of ten schoolchildren who smoke pot find it easy to obtain.

And four schoolchildren end up in court on riot charges after a bus depot confrontation with Police.

Ringing in changes caused uproar at the Bermuda Telephone Company where they attempted, but failed to slash workers hours which effectively cut wages by ten percent.

In February , the weather cut up rough for passengers on a Bermuda bound flight from New Jersey.

After a turbulent flight the pilot made three failed landing attempts before heading back to the US.

Randolph Lightbourne, on the other hand, was heading to prison after landing a 22-year sentence for armed robbery of the Bank of N.T. Butterfield in Somerset.

Violence also spread to the football field where six footballers were sent off in two matches with one Vasco player being kicked and punched by brothers playing for Devonshire Cougars.

It is the first of many such instances as amateur players take the game far too seriously.

And there was the first inkling of a year of strife at King Edward VII Memorial Hospital as staff issued a strike ultimatum over restructuring.

Government Sen. Calvin Smith courted controversy after suggesting a rethink over whether marijuana should be illegal.

The business and political arena were stunned over the sudden death of new United Bermuda Party MP Madeleine Joell who was struck by a suspected burst blood vessel in the brain.

Ms Joell -- a distinguished amateur golfer and top ACE executive -- died of an aneurysm within three days of becoming ill.

Ex-deputy Premier Jerome Dill and Opposition Sen. Maxwell Burgess were frontrunners to take her place. However grassroots supporters in Paget West rejected the chance to have a big name candidate and instead picked Pamela Gordon's sister Patricia Gordon Pamplin who won the seat.

While the UBP were squabbling the PLP were getting to grips with running the country as Finance Minister Eugene Cox presented his party's first ever budget.

The half-a-billion dollar plan promised a boost to education, more houses, a drug court and a twice-weekly trash pick up.

However not many goods were being picked up from Hamilton docks as workers took part in staggered sick-outs with 15 workers each day staying home.

There was happier news at the National Sports Centre where the new running track proved an instant hit with early morning walkers.

In March , Flatts gas station workers had a lucky escape when a masked raider aimed a pistol at them and pulled the trigger only for it to misfire.

Firing on all cylinders was a tornado which tore through Smith's Parish, destroying walls and tearing roofs from two homes.

And the Island's financial base faced the winds of change with the UN drawing up strict standards for offshore tax havens.

Britain had better news for the Island with the offer of passports to Bermudians -- though Foreign Secretary Robin Cook warned that the Island will have to abolish the death penalty and flogging.

There was a further shock to the penal system when a teenage Co-Ed inmate claimed she was raped by two prison officers -- the Foreign Office ordered an immediate report.

In April Justis Smith was ordered to face retrial, charged with the killing of Canadian schoolgirl Rebecca Middleton after the case collapsed the previous year when Puisne Judge Vincent Meerabux ruled there was insufficient evidence and an abuse of the process.

In May a secret Government report leaked to The Royal Gazette called for overseas cops to bolster the local force. Throughout the year the clamour for foreign Police grew louder as numbers dwindled.

And King Edward VII Memorial Hospital was described as having "horrendous problems'' by Dr. Ewart Brown in a letter circulated amongst the Island's physicians.

Also coming under the microscope was the foreign population with the introduction of the ex-pat hotline to encourage people to rat on those breaking work permit rules. Opposition MPs blasted it as Big Brother style tactics.

Things were hotting up on Court Street where a male strip show, which included lewd acts with melons, sparked a near riot from flesh-hungry female fans. They stormed the stage to tear the clothing from the two US strippers before attacking undercover cops who were taping the show.

The UBP zeroed in on Government's travel expenses after finding that the Premier's right hand man Col. David Burch had run up more than $10,000 on jetsetting in just five months -- the issue rumbled on throughout the year.

Also landing in bother was Elbow Beach Hotel boss Bill Shoaf who was cleared of making racist remarks -- he then suffered death threats and resigned within weeks.

Slick legal moves catch out the captain of the Pascale Delmas -- he is fined a whopping $30,000 for spilling oil off the Bermuda coast the previous year.

The fine is later reduced to $7,500 on appeal.

Fed-up Police officer stage a sick-out in protest at the pace of pay talks.

They are followed by prison officers angry over manpower shortages at Westgate Correctional Facility.

Murderers Michael Dean Eberly and Michael Brian Pitcher got life sentences for the slaying of 69-year-old neighbour Beatrice Simmons in her Ireland Island home.

In June Bermuda College vice president Donald Peters hits the headlines with staff accusing him of treating them with disdain during a contracts row.

The tragic suicide of Baha'i musician Andrew Morrison was marked with a Race Unity Day Concert in Victoria Park.

A landmark legal case ruled that journalists were not obliged to reveal their sources after former The Royal Gazette business reporter David Marchant was threatened with jail for failing to name the source of stories about Bermuda Fire and Marine Insurance Co. Ltd.

Also with something to celebrate were the leaders of the theatre boycott who met to mark the 40th anniversary of an action which helped bring an end to segregation.

A series of features on the Police revealed claims of rampant sexual harassment and slipping standards while Commissioner Jean-Jacques Lemay admitted morale had plummeted.

Also facing sinking spirits were owners of luxury houses and business who were hit by a land tax hike. However, 75 percent of land tax payers were promised slashed bills.

In July a Puerto Rico-bound flight from New York hit massive turbulence, dropping 500 feet in seconds. The crew were labelled heroes by passengers for running to their aid despite suffering massive injuries themselves.

Politicians of all parties came together to praise former Premier Sir John Sharpe who died at the age of 77.

In August there was disappointment all round when the $300 million Morgan's Harbour scheme fell through.

But there was happy news on the sporting front with equestrienne MJ Tumbridge clinching Bermuda's first Pan-Am games gold medal, while sailors Sarah Lane Wright and Malcolm Smith brought home silvers.

Controversial Magistrate Edward King caused uproar after he remanded two teens for breaking and entering a diner and stealing $10.75 and a soft drink. Even the complainant was horrified.

Also horrified were the Island's taxi drivers who picketed Parliament over Government plans to allow funeral homes to operate their own limos -- four PLP backbenchers boycotted the vote but escaped punishment from the Whip.

The Criminal Injuries Compensation Board handed out $70,000 to a 45-year-old woman who was given AIDS by her boyfriend.

A mother blasted Canadian immigration for putting her baby's life at risk in a red-tape bungle after they delayed letting them through to get urgent medical treatment for the child.

And Bermudian Charles Lyndon Fubler was equally disgusted at the US authorities after Mark Squires was cleared of shooting him in the head in Colorado in 1995. Mr. Fubler lost vision and had to learn to read and write again. However Squires was convicted of shooting two others in the same incident and faces the death penalty.

Troy Douglas' sporting career was put in jeopardy after the former Bermuda sprinter tested positive for a banned steroid while representing Holland at the World Championships in Spain. However Douglas vowed he was innocent and launched an appeal.

Insiders at King Edward VII Memorial Hospital claimed there was a staffing crisis with mass resignations and chronic sickness among the nursing staff.

However Hospitals Board chairman Raymonde Dill angered ex-pat nurses by claiming they tend to quit with just two to four weeks' notice at the end of the summer.

In September brave Duncan Newby certainly was not a quitter -- he swam for Bermuda in the Latin Caribbean Championships despite being ravaged by cancer.

The alarm bells were sounded about declining literacy levels during a speech at the Labour Day festivities. Teachers Union President Anthony Wolffe said at one middle school only seven out of 126 pupils had managed to reach the required reading standard.

The Adult Education School later claimed that the Island's illiteracy rate could be as high as one in six.

And not oil was well at sea with the captain of Atlantic Forest landing a record $40,000 fine for leaving a slick near St. David's Head in March. The fine is later reduced to $15,000 after an appeal.

Bermuda College vice president Donald Peters landed himself in deep water after he branded a colleague a racist and white supremacist in a memo sent only to black college staff. Dr. Peters was given a "severe reprimand'', but continues in his post.

ACE building workers strike after seven colleagues were sacked for union activities -- the action spreads to other sites and then involved Bermuda Industrial Union members marching to a general meeting before Labour Minister Paula Cox forced both sides into compulsory arbitration.

Hurricane Gert caused flooding and destroyed a house in Tucker's Town.

Thousands lose their electricity and Dolphin Quest lose four of its animals after swells overcome their pen in Southampton -- two were lured back a week later.

Conmtinued on Page 54 Bermuda avoids the wrost of hurricane In a landmark judgment Sharina Anne Tuzo was found guilty of manslaughter of her five-month-old godson Saed Young after a jury ruled she did nothing to protect the child from her battering boyfriend.

Bermuda Electric Light Company caused a storm after admitting that homes could be blacked out due to the Millennium bug.

Princess Anne breezed into Bermuda for a low-key visit of charities.

Mourners flocked to the funeral of popular amateur footballer Dean Young who was stabbed to death during a fight at a house in Crossland Lane, Pembroke.

Hard questions were asked about the Department of Public Prosecutions after it appeared they intervened in the handling of a minor assault case against one-time PLP candidate Rodney Smith. Magistrate Archibald Warner said: "Somebody tried to interfere with this process.'' The Governor and Foreign Office launched a probe.

The report on that inquiry is yet to be completed.

Intensive Care Unit beds at the King Edward VII Memorial Hospital had to be temporarily closed due to a staffing shortage.

Also short of numbers were the Police who took 45 minutes to respond to an emergency. They denied the claim only to admit it later. Later Police Commissioner Jean-Jacques Lemay said some of his officers were just "plain lazy''.

A mass sick-out closed all but two of the Island's 39 public schools as teachers protested over hours.

Premier Jennifer Smith attacked some of her own party for asking Ministers to put jobs and contracts their way.

Her second Throne Speech pledged 50 more homes and the abolition of hanging and flogging.

In November ousted hospital engineer Neil Crane launched a writ against the Bermuda Hospitals Board for wrongful dismissal and against ZBM for libel.

US motivational speaker Joe Clark flew in to deliver a blunt message for Bermuda during his speech at Bermuda Union of Teachers' conference, entitled "Stop focusing on material wealth, stop out-of-wedlock births and bring back corporal punishment''.

However flights out of Bermuda were causing a controversy with $158,000 worth of overseas trips logged up by Government Ministers and civil servants in the first six months of the current financial year.

Also set to flight were Jamaican immigrants rounded up in dawn raids -- the move was seen as heavy-handed, discriminatory and ill-advised. Several of the 16 arrested were found to be living in Bermuda legally.

Living in Bermuda more comfortably were the first of 11 families who moved into their new homes at the Southside Development in St. David's. New residents said the development, on the former US base, gave them a chance of owning an affordable home.

The German immigration department was blasted by Tourism Department's P.R. man Charles Webbe who accused them of racism for stopping him at Frankfurt airport because he was black.

Customs officers marched on Government to protest over working conditions and they revealed that staff shortages meant Bermuda was getting swamped by drugs while losing out on millions of dollars because duties were going uncollected.

Tourism Minister David Allen landed himself in hot water after saying the review of the Civil Service had also touched upon the need to downsize the size of Cabinet. The claim was later denied by Premier Jennifer Smith.

A murder hunt was launched after Sandys Parish resident Glen Calvin Wolffe was brutally murdered in his own home.

Government overspending meant it had to put in for $5 million extra -- with the Premier's Office and the Tourism Ministry getting nearly half that total.

Later in the month a freak storm caught Bermuda off guard, cutting power and causing accidents.

In December the epic Bermuda Fire and Marine case was finally settled out of court for $35 million after it was predicted the case would drag on for another 12 months.

Childkiller Jermaine Pearman was jailed for 12 years for killing his five-month godson Saed Young. Accomplice and girlfriend Sharina Tuzo was jailed for six years.

Work begins on Bermuda's first new tourist accommodation in 27 years -- Daniel's Head Village in Sandys Parish -- and will feature 96 cottages, some with glass viewing platforms over the water.

MPs sound the death knell for the death penalty in a marathon session in the House of Assembly. However PLP abstainers are blasted for cowardice by Opposition Whip Cole Simons.

Development Minister Terry Lister caused a storm after accusing the US government of being racist and carrying out "nothing other than the legalised murder of black men''.

When the bill reached the Senate it was torn apart by the UBP's Mark Pettingill who pointed out it was riddled with sloppy errors, for example, a Policemen who ignored a crime could end up getting life in prison.

Government Senate Leader Milton Scott admitted it had errors but it was still passed.

Works and Engineering Minister Alex Scott announced plans for a fast ferry linking the airport to the rest of the Island.

KFC customer Idrin Paynter lost his sight in one eye after being attacked by another customer. Mr. Paynter claimed KFC staff failed to call Police or intervene -- however the company denied this.

Also having an unmerry Christmas was Bermuda's soccer supremo Clyde Best who was axed by Bermuda Football Association. Best, who was Bermuda's most successful player, attacked BFA president Neville Tyrrell for sacking him in the middle of the World Cup qualifiers and for knowing nothing about the game.

Controversial Magistrate Edward King escaped with a reprimand after it was alleged that he had ordered Crown counsel Larry Mussenden to be taken to the Police station in handcuffs. Mr. King had also admitted repeatedly calling Mr.

Mussenden a coward.

American authorities reveal they arrested Bermudian Customs officer Betty Azzario after she was found with more than a kilo of cocaine in New York. It was alleged that she did a controlled delivery of the drug to boyfriend and former Bermudian international footballer Dennis Robinson and the pair were arrested.

However there was happier news on the tourism front with Regent International Hotels set to join in with plans for the rebirth of the Castle Harbour hotel, with work set to start in the spring.

But hundreds of Islanders ended the year with less than a spring in their step with the flu bug laying people low for days.

Smoked out: Fire swept through much of Harrington Sound Primary School at the beginning of the year. Three boys -- from another school -- later pleaded guilty to setting the fire, which closed the main school until September.

Major visitor: Premier Jennifer Smith talks with former US Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, one of many distinguished visitors to the Island during the year.

Golden girl: MJ Tumbridge celebrates her gold medal in the equestrian three-day event at the Pan American Games -- the first ever gold medal for Bermuda at the Pan Ams.

Parental advice: Bar manager Kevin Pollock is embraced by his father after being sentenced to nine months in prison. Pollock pleaded guilty to "manslaughter by negligence'' in the death of Craig McGavern.

Verdict: Roshea Young is embraced outside Supreme Court after her former best friend, Sharina Tuzo, was found guilty of manslaughter by negligence in the 1997 death of Ms Young's five-month-old son, Saed.

George Benson wowed the crowd at the 1999 Jazz Fest at the Royal Naval Dockyard.

A Gert storm: Hurricane Gert passed by the Island at the end of September, leaving a trail of damage.

Heading out: Dr. George Miller returns to Florida after deciding not to contest extradition proceedings.

On the road: Up with People took their roadshow to Dockyard during their May visit.

Failed gift: Government MP Delaey Robinson rejected the "peace offering'' (left) from advertising executive Dusty Hine as the row over a 1998 General Election campaign ad featuring Mr. Robinson rumbled on.