Carrot Bay Fiesta Resumes After Incident; Territorywide
Organisers of the Carrot Bay Cultural Fiesta confirmed the festival resumed Friday after Thursday evening’s cancellation following a reported shooting outside the event, and said increased police presence will be in place (statement via VINO). Separately, the Virgin Islands Festivals and Fairs Committee announced a suite of enhanced security measures for tonight’s LaVida Cottay Festiville in Road Town after an emergency meeting with police and security officials (Guavaberry).
Organisers of the Carrot Bay Cultural Fiesta have confirmed the festival continued on Friday after cancelling activities on Thursday evening following a serious incident that disrupted the event. In a statement issued the morning of August 7, 2026, the Carrot Bay Cultural Fiesta Committee extended "sincere thoughts and prayers" to those affected and strongly condemned the act of violence, saying "Violence has no place in our community or at any event that is intended to bring people together in celebration" (VINO).
Chairperson Natasha Harrigan told attendees that the safety and well‑being of patrons, vendors, volunteers, performers and everyone attending remain the festival's highest priority, and that concern for public safety prompted organisers to cancel last evening's programme. After consultation with relevant authorities, the committee decided to proceed with planned activities for Friday with what it described as an increased police presence (VINO).
The Carrot Bay Cultural Fiesta, a highlight of the Emancipation Festival calendar in the BVI, resumed under today’s theme "Culture Connect," which began at 3:00 PM and featured donkey races, a cultural relay and novelty games including tug‑of‑war. Organisers reminded attendees to follow directions from event staff and law enforcement to help keep the celebration safe (VINO).
Saturday's programme, themed "Aquatic Vybez," is still scheduled to start at 2:00 PM and will continue the weekend's mix of cultural performances and family activities, organisers said. Vendors and performers reiterated their commitment to the festival's founding principles of culture, unity, family and community, and expressed hope the remainder of the weekend will pass without incident (VINO).
Following Thursday’s events in Carrot Bay — reported by police and organisers as a shooting outside the festival area — other festival organisers moved quickly to review security across the Territory. The Virgin Islands Festivals and Fairs Committee held an emergency meeting with the Acting Commissioner of Police, security officials and committee representatives and announced enhanced security measures for tonight’s LaVida Cottay Festiville in Road Town (Guavaberry).
Those measures include the installation of additional security cameras throughout the Festival Village and at strategic locations around Road Town, closure of all festival access gates to unauthorised vehicles with no vehicle entry permitted without an authorised festival pass, mandatory security searches of all vehicles entering the Festival Village, and an increased deployment of police officers and security personnel with intensified active patrols throughout the event area, the Committee said (Guavaberry).
The Festivals and Fairs Committee urged patrons attending LaVida Cottay Festiville to arrive early, cooperate with security personnel and report any suspicious activity to the nearest police officer or security official. Both the Carrot Bay Committee and the Festivals and Fairs Committee thanked the Royal Virgin Islands Police Force, security partners, volunteers and members of the public for their cooperation (VINO; Guavaberry).
Local authorities have not released further details about the Carrot Bay incident or whether any arrests have been made. Anyone with information or concerns is encouraged to contact the Royal Virgin Islands Police Force as organisers continue working to balance community celebration with public safety.
Primary source: VINO