The West Indian Day Parade is one of the rowdiest annual spectacles in the city, transforming Crown and Prospect Heights into a blaze of neon feathers, shimmering body glitter and booming reggae, all fused together by the sticky glaze of so many pounds of jerk chicken. Such chaotic revelry is regularly accompanied by its share of violence, and this year's festivities left one dead and four injured by gunfire.
According to police, a 55-year-old man was fatally shot in the torso around 3:30 a.m. at the corner of Empire Boulevard and Rogers Avenue, a few blocks away from the parade route. Two others were shot by the same suspect, and two others were also shot in the next hour in an unrelated spate of violence.
Police blanketed the streets beginning Sunday evening, with clumps of officers occupying nearly every corner in the neighborhood in anticipation of J'ouvert, a rambunctious pre-dawn street party that precedes the parade later in the day.
Rowdy West Indian Day Parade from Gothamist on Vimeo.
By daybreak Monday, it's safe to assume police had about had their fill of the festivities, their cruisers covered in paint and the sweat of raucous revelers who piled on.
Revelers On Cop Cars at West Indian Day Parade from Gothamist on Vimeo.
Last year's festivities saw a stabbing and two shootings, but managed to conclude with no deaths. Police did not immediately return a request for comment regarding the number of parade-related arrests made this weekend.
