In case you missed it, here are OBSERVER ONLINE’s top 10 stories today: 

1. SOEs not intended to replace crime strategies, says Johnson Smith

Leader of Government Business and Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade, Senator Kamina Johnson Smith says states of emergency (SOEs) are not intended to replace all strategies or plans geared at restoring citizen security.

2. Construction worker shot dead in St Elizabeth

The Black River police are probing the shooting death of a construction worker on the Killmurray Luana main road in St, Elizabeth on Saturday July 20.

3. Family to sue Royal Caribbean over toddler’s death

There are “a million things” the cruise company could have done to prevent the death of an 18-month-old Indiana girl who fell to her death from an open window on a cruise ship in Puerto Rico, the toddler’s mother said in an interview broadcast Monday.

4. Two females found dead inside house in Spanish Town

Two females were yesterday found dead inside their home on Bonanza Crescent in Spanish Town, St Catherine. 

5. Drought still affecting water supply in Kingston and St Andrew — NWC

The National Water Commission is advising that its water supply systems in Kingston and St Andrew are still being impacted by ongoing drought conditions affecting several parishes across the island.

6. PEP, tertiary students to benefit from $11m in scholarships from energy companies

Jamaica Energy Partners (JEP) and West Kingston Power Partners (WKPP) will on Friday disburse scholarships totalling $11.05 million to 30 Primary Exit Profile (PEP) achievers and seven tertiary students.

7. Road fatalities climb to 251

The Road Safety Unit says road deaths have passed the 250 mark and is again advising motorists to wear their seatbelts, helmets, and other protective devices to save life, as well as, to pay close attention to road signs and markings.

8. Over a third of households have sought help from PATH

Over one-third of Jamaican households have applied for assistance under the Programme of Advancement Through Health and Education (PATH), since it started in 2002.

9. NY leaders blast utility firm after latest blackout amidst heat wave

New York’s mayor slammed power company Con Edison on Monday after thousands of homes suffered electricity cuts just a week after a major outage plunged Manhattan into darkness.

10. Cops probe murder of 27-y-o St Elizabeth man

A 27-year-old man was shot dead early Saturday morning outside his home in Brompton district, St Elizabeth.Dead is Shannon Forbes, otherwise called ‘Juvenile’.