When one considers the havoc wreaked in Anguilla, almost a year ago, by Hurricane Irma, it was perhaps unthinkable then that the island would have recovered to the extent that there would be a spirit for the level of carnival, boat racing and parting seen just days ago.
In fact, it is understood that doubt was cast on having any semblance of a Summer Festival, in the first place, due to the island’s difficult fiscal and economic plight. It was sheer resilience on the part of the people of Anguilla, and the organizing committee, that they were able to ascend from the shambles of a brutal and frightening calamity – to dance, sing and parade on the streets; to engage in various entertainment activities at the Landsome Bowl Cultural Centre and elsewhere; and to crowd the beaches for the August holiday boat races despite the searing heat.
Obviously, there would have been a lot of disappointment among the island’s merrymakers, our returning nationals and visitors, had there not been the series of cultural events they have long become accustomed and attracted to. The absence of this notable period of fun and frolic would also have been bad for Anguilla’s economy from the standpoint of Government revenue earned from taxes and fees paid at the ports – in particular from the influx of so many people. In addition, the varied hotels, guesthouses and villas would have suffered the loss of the extra service and money they expected.
A big plus for the island was the fact that the Summer Festival was, in essence, incident-free with no disappointing acts of violence or other crimes to impede, cancel or otherwise ruin a good and enjoyable time of social and cultural interaction and display. It is for this reason that all and sundry must be highly commended for exhibiting the type of discipline that augurs well for the future of the Anguilla Summer Festival.
Some of the main events of the delightful festival are captured elsewhere in The Anguillian newspaper for the national record.
