Las’ Lap ends in tragedy
BASSETERRE, St. Kitts – WHAT was supposed to be an event of fun and revelry, officially bringing a close to the Sugar Mas’ 41 festivities in St. Kitts, ended in tragedy and has left a sour taste in the mouths of Sugar Mas’ fans.
On Wednesday (Jan 04) at about 4:00 p.m., the Las’ Lap jam began with troupes and revellers who participated in the Children’s Parade and the J’Ouvert jam just days before – along with others – making use of the last opportunity for Sugar Mas’ 41 to enjoy themselves through the streets of Basseterre.
The bands and troupes with their vibrant, scintillating and creative costumes flowed up Fort Street and made their rounds along the route.
As the hours passed, the crowds of revellers thickened, migrating intermittently to the spots that had the most action.
And while the vast majority was having fun, either observing or participating in the festivities, an incident occurred in the vicinity of Government Headquarters; one which resulted in a young man being hospitalised.
The victim is Vernon Elliott of St. Johnston Village, who was shot on Church Street while amongst revellers of the Nu Vybes Band International. He was rushed to the Joseph N. France Hospital, where he underwent surgery and is currently nursing his wounds.
In the interest of the public’s safety, the authorities took the decision to end the Las’ Lap jam prematurely. It was scheduled to conclude at 9:00 p.m. Party Central, which was set up on Church Street and scheduled to end at midnight, was also prematurely ended.
And just about two hours after the shooting incident, Jelani Williams of Lime Kiln was fatally stabbed in his chest while in the vicinity of the Ferry Terminal, Basseterre, St. Kitts.
Head of the Security and Public Safety Committee for Carnival, Ivor Blake – in an exclusive interview with SKNVibes – gave his comments on these incidents and the entire Sugar Mas’ 41 experience.
“The entire Carnival went well until the last hour when we had quite a few incidents which marred the whole Carnival. We were hoping to have no major incidents. And these put a damper on the Carnival, from my perspective.”
He said that from a security standpoint, all measures were implemented to ensure that the public was safe and secured while enjoying the festivities, but noted that they had no control over people’s personal attitude and behaviour.
“We cannot prevent everything. It really has to do with people and their personal behaviour and attitudes. People sometimes don’t understand the consequences of their actions. I have personally had to intervene in too many instances. There was one in particular where this guy was actually fighting back at me. And it wasn’t until after I pulled him aside and explained to him that I was doing it for his good that he calmed down.”
Blake offered commendation to the majority of revellers, whom he said were well-behaved but frowned on the behaviour of the “small group of people who took things to the extreme and caused mayhem”.
To the families of the victims, Blake expressed his condolences and sympathies.
