Promoters of the popular Friday night party series ‘Fridays At The Devon’ are dispelling any misinformation that their event has been happening at the Reggae Mill Bar at Devon House, since Jamaica’s lockdown due to the novel CoronaVirus global pandemic in March.
Minister of Local Government and Community Development, Desmond McKenzie announced last Sunday that Devon House is to be shut down starting Monday, July 6. The announcement came after numerous videos surfaced on social media showcasing an event being held at the Reggae Mill venue on the premises, where patrons did not appear to be practicing social distancing or wearing masks. Minister Mckenzie held a meeting with the event organizers on Monday to go over the protocols established under the Disaster Risk Management Act which banned hosting of events and imposed strict social distancing protocols.
Chad Williams, organiser for Fridays ‘ATD’, says the event seen in the viral videos online is not a staging of Fridays ‘ATD’. He says he hopes and highly anticipates being reunited with patrons as soon as it is advised that it is safe to do so. “Until then, we want patrons to stay safe, be healthy and wear a mask”, he says.
The Fridays ‘ATD’ team reassures that they have and will continue to respect and follow the protocols given to the public by the Jamaican Government in an effort to fight the COVID19 virus. The promoters say they’ve paused all events since the lockdown, and are aware of how much their patrons miss the weekly series. However, they’re awaiting the protocol for events and guidelines created by the government to carefully reopen the entertainment sector. “After all, you cannot be the life of the party without life, so protecting lives come first, always”, Williams says. Devon House has since been reopened.
