Blacktip Island residents have started on-the-sly betting operations concerning the Caribbean island’s aging generator’s frequent power outages. (photo courtesy of Taurus Emerald)
The recent rash of power outages on Blacktip Island has resulted in an unofficial, illegal betting industry on the small Caribbean island, with residents placing wagers on the date and time of the next outages.
“When we had power problems a while back, there was an official lottery to raise money for the power plant,” Kay Valve said. “This is a different critter all together. Folks are placing bets on the sly, unofficially, and pocketing their winnings. Whoever guesses closest to the precise date-and-time takes all. Who’s organizing it, and who’s betting, no one’ll say officially.
“Near as we can tell, the betting venue changes regularly, to keep one step ahead of the law,” Valve said. “No one’s sure exactly how much money’s involved, but with the damn-near daily outages, there has to be a ton of cash being passed under the table.”
Island authorities are attempting to crack down on the gambling.
“Wagering of any kind is illegal in the Tiperon Islands,” Island Police Constable Rafe Marquette said. “We can turn a blind eye to the occasional ‘I bet you $10,’ one-off sorts of bets, but something this large in scale can’t be allowed to continue.
“The big worry now is bad actors sabotaging the plant for financial gain,” Marquette said. “And if off-island gangs get involved, we could have rolling blackouts for the foreseeable future, with Blacktippers’ money being funneled elsewhere.”
Most island residents claimed ignorance.
“There’s rumors of gambling, sure, but this little rock is a rumor factory,” Gage Hoase said. “Ninety percent of ‘em are bogus. But if we get lemons with all these outages, can’t blame folks for making some lemonade. There’s stories of folks making unofficial side bets, too, but, I reckon the first rule of power-outage betting is don’t talk about power-outage betting.”
Others put a positive spin on the outages.
“I make the best of the power failures,” Chrissy Graysby said. “I can now reprogram my stove and microwave clocks in total darkness. And losing power makes you slow down, really, and enjoy just sitting and being, like our ancestors did. Modern island life can get so hectic, can’t it?”
Marquette noted the gambling has self-regulated on a small scale.
“Apparently all power plant workers are banned from betting, so those folks are in the clear in my investigations,” he said. “Seems Stoney MacAdam won three times in a row at the beginning of all this, and everybody knew he was playing dirty pool. That resulted in Stoney and three others in the medical clinic.
“And, though gambling is illegal, if I were a betting man, my money’d be on 11:16 tomorrow morning,” Marquette added.
The Blacktip Times 