This was a very different Grand Kadooment.
A scaled-down Crop Over Festival climaxed yesterday on Kadooment Day, ending where it usually starts at the National Stadium, but seeming to lack the usual fervour and frenzy associated with the final event of the season.
The reconstructed and tweaked final day did provide a safer environment in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, but the climax at times produced a sedate-looking event with smaller bands, less dancing on the road, and a mask-wearing public in some instances.
Crop Over had not been held since 2019 because of the pandemic, and it showed, with only 14 bands registering to compete along the new route from Warrens along the ABC Highway, up to the JTC Ramsay (Bussa) Roundabout in Haggatt Hall, St Michael, turning left at the Clyde Walcott Roundabout in Hothersal Turning and on to the Stadium.
The sweltering 32° Celsius heat that probably felt like 36° along the wide-open highway, also did not make it any easier for revellers.
However, Prime Minister Mia Amor Mottley made it clear this year’s version was a litmus test. (BA)