Kingston on the road to recovery
A year on after the incursions, Jamaica’s capital exudes vibrancy and resilience Knutsford Boulevard, New Kingston Published: May 11, 2011 Hospitality Jamaica On May 1, the streets were filled with a riot of colour, music on the crescendo and sea of revellers dancing their blues away at the Carnival parade that meandered to through the streets of Kingston. This was a welcome and refreshing contrast twelve months back, when the air in the city was filled tension, apprehension and fear as security forces prepared for intervention in West Kingston community of Tivoli Gardens. The incursion, which saw pitched gun fights between the security forces and the supporters of Christopher ‘Dudus’ Coke left Kingston scarred and bruised, and the city’s tourism and hospitality industry uncertainty. Smoke bellowing from Tivoli Gardens, May 2010 “It (the impact) was quite significant with hotels dropping to as low as 10 -15 per cent occupancy [and], attractions, taxi operators e