Cayman Carnival Junior Batabano has been postponed, due to “circumstances beyond our control” according to its committee chair, Donna Myrie.
In a statement sent to the Compass on Tuesday, Myrie said, “Our shipping agent had problems delivering and [locating] the cargo with the kiddies’ costumes in a timely fashion even though the service was to be expressed.”
A new date for the event has not yet been finalised, Myrie added.
She said that, in the many years of organising on the event, “we never had to postpone a staging unless the cause was natural disaster”.
The postponement has resulted in “several non-budgeted expenses and line items to re-stage,” Myrie said, adding, “The re-hosting of Junior Batabano Road Parade and Teen Dance has not only doubled our small team’s workload but our expenses as well.
“We have to re-apply for event permits, road closure, rebook police, secure the volunteers, rebook the service providers, redo promotional materials, re-engage media, and extend the stay of our costume designers for another two and half weeks, which amounts to change of flight, extended accommodations, salary, per diem and transportation.”
The 21st Junior Batabano, originally set to take place on 20 April, is the kickoff event for carnival season in Cayman.
Each year, more than 200 kids flock to the streets of George Town in colourful costumes, displaying national pride and bringing large crowds together to enjoy festivities during the day.
Myrie said the committee is “working assiduously with the police to derive a workable date for the restaging in the shortest possible time”.
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