Residents traveling to St. John for the upcoming Celebration and Emancipation Day festivities will need to present a current government ID before boarding the ferry, according to an advisory from the V.I. Police Department. Additionally, the V.I. Port Authority said car ferry service to and from the island will be reduced from four barges to three on Thursday and Friday, with full service resuming Saturday morning.
The VIPD said the ID requirement is according to Coast Guard maritime law. It also advised that during the St. John Celebration, which runs through Saturday, the road from Mongoose Junction (Route 20) to Northshore will be closed to traffic until the completion of the parade on July 4th, which steps off at 11 a.m. at the National Park ballfield entrance. There will be parking in the public parking lot in the Gravel Pit, it said. Fireworks and the closing of the Village will commence at 9 p.m. Saturday.
On Friday, the J’ouvert celebration will begin at sunrise at the National Park ballfield entrance, followed by the annual Emancipation Day program at 1 p.m. at Slim Man’s Parking Lot, honoring the abolition of slavery in the Virgin Islands. A torchlight evening procession from the Village entrance will begin at 7 p.m.
Meanwhile, the Port Authority advised that the Virginia Pride car ferry will be out of service on Thursday and Friday and is expected to resume Saturday, with the first departure at 9:30 a.m. While the Virginia Pride is offline, the Todd G car ferry will continue to operate on its regular half-hour schedule, starting with the first departure from Cruz Bay at 6 a.m., according to VIPA. The two barges operated by Love City Car Ferries will also run on their normal schedule during this time, it said.
Once the Virginia Pride is back in service on Saturday, all normal ferry schedules will resume, said VIPA. For more information about the Virginia Pride, commuters may contact Big Red Barge Co. at 340-227-0918 or via email at info@bigredbarge.co.
The VIPD also issued the following safety tips for those attending the holiday weekend festivities:
- No smoking of any kind (to include the rear of the booths), no vaping
- Be sure to lock your car doors and do not leave items visible inside.
- Try to park in well-lit areas.
- Driving under the influence of drugs and/or alcohol is prohibited.
- Walk in groups.
- Be vigilant of your surroundings.
- Please limit the amount of jewelry you wear. You do not want to draw any unnecessary attention to yourself.
- If you find a lost child or lose a child, notify the nearest law enforcement officer. Parents/guardians are advised to write their name, phone number and the child’s name on a piece of paper and place it in the child’s pocket.
- Law enforcement officers will be assigned to patrol inside and outside every event.
