Ceiba (sai-EE-bah) is a small town in northeast Puerto Rico. It is named after the famous Ceiba tree. Ceiba is located in the east coast of the island, bordering the Atlantic Ocean, north of Naguabo, south of Fajardo, and east of Río Grande. Ceiba is spread over 7 wards and Ceiba Pueblo (The downtown area and the administrative center of the city). It is part of the Fajardo Metropolitan Statistical Area. Driving Time from San Juan: 1 hour. Ceiba, situated near Fajardo, used to be home of an American military air-base, the Roosevelt Roads Naval Station. Most of the units there were relocated and the base was closed in 2004. Ex-governor Sila María Calderón suggested turning the property into a major international airport, to serve as a relief to Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport in San Juan, and to increase the number of international airlines that operate into Puerto Rico. She has met with skepticism about these plans from such groups as environmentalists, economists and others, and the situation as far as what will be done with Ceiba's old air base is still being debated. Locals are commonly known as "Los Come Sopa" (Soup Eaters). Even though there is no official reason as to why they were called this, a few stories have been suggested. Among the tales is the belief that since the town did not have a local meat market people had to travel long distances in order to buy some meat and therefore mostly ate soup. Ceiba is also known as "La Ciudad del Marlin" (the town of the Marlin). Ceiba was founded on April 7, 1838 by Luis de la Cruz. Ceiba derives its name from an Indian word Seyba, which is the name for a famous tree that grows in the island, the Ceiba pentandra.