Gov. Albert Bryan Jr. acknowledged the tragic end to the 2025 St. Thomas Carnival during a Government House briefing Monday.
“It’s just with tremendous pride and reflection that we wrapped up another incredible Virgin Islands Carnival in St. Thomas — the celebration that showcased and showcases our culture, talent and community spirit every single year,” he said. “But even as we celebrated, we were reminded of the challenges we continue to face as a community.”
Carnival came to an abrupt end when 26-year-old Franky Matthew was shot and killed late Saturday night in or near the restroom area in the Fort Christian parking lot. One man was injured and another killed in a second deadly shooting approximately 24 hours later.
Bryan extended his condolences to the victims’ families and urged anyone with information about the shootings to either contact law enforcement or submit an anonymous tip to Crime Stoppers. Bryan expressed confidence that the perpetrators will be caught but lamented the “cycle of violence and sadness.”
“Because his parents, his mother or family is going to be very sad when they got locked up,” he said before referencing the number of pardons and sentence commutations he’s authorized as governor.
“We need to educate our young people on better ways to handle discrepancies, arguments between one another,” he said a moment later.
Saturday night’s shooting prompted countless discussions and conversations on social media about the state of young men in the territory and the efficacy of law enforcement. Last week’s briefing included a substantial pre-Carnival safety update, during which acting St. Thomas Police Chief Deborah Hodge said surveillance cameras had been installed “throughout the village and the downtown areas and other areas in the territory, which are monitored 24/7” and that drone cameras would also be used.
“Yes, we still maintain a lot of cameras for Carnival,” Bryan said when asked about them Monday. “We still put them up — we have to — but … cameras are not a deterrent for people who are on a mission. I don’t know about the one on Sunday evening, but the one on Saturday night — that definitely looks like something targeted.”
Bryan said cameras can deter a lot — but not all — crime.
“That’s why I asked people to — you need to talk to our young men about resolving matters, because all the amount of cameras, all the amount of police is not going to be a deterrent to people who are determined to take other people’s lives,” he said.
On Monday, Bryan also announced his nomination of acting Sports, Parks and Recreation Commissioner Vincent Roberts to permanently head the department following last summer’s departure of former Commissioner Calvert White, who resigned amid a federal indictment that accused him of selling a $2.1 million surveillance camera contract for $16,000 in kickbacks.
Bryan later acknowledged the start of National Hurricane Preparedness Week and encouraged Virgin Islanders to steel themselves for another hurricane season by creating an emergency plan, replenishing supplies, inspecting and securing homes and establishing clear communication lines and plans with family and friends.
“I like that,” he said of the last suggestion, “because oftentimes you go and you finish securing your home, and that’s when your cousin, your auntie, your grandmother, somebody calls you and say, ‘oh I need help with hurricane preparation,’ right when the winds start to pick up,” he said. “So you gotta make sure that they’re ready, because forecasters have 17 named storms this year and four major hurricanes — nine hurricanes and four major hurricanes.”
An early forecast issued by Colorado State University last month said researchers anticipate that the 2025 Atlantic hurricane season will have “above-normal activity” and “an above-average probability for major hurricanes making landfall along the continental United States coastline and in the Caribbean.”
The upcoming hurricane season, which starts on June 1, coincides with the Trump administration’s pursuit of funding and staff cuts to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, which houses the National Weather Service. On Friday, five former NWS leaders reportedly signed an open letter to the administration warning that the agency’s remaining staff “will have an impossible task to continue its current level of services.”
“Our worst nightmare is that weather forecast offices will be so understaffed that there will be a needless loss of life,” they wrote.
Bryan acknowledged Monday that the territory depends on the agency for hurricane forecasting and said the U.S. Virgin Islands usually has a dedicated meteorologist assigned to the territory.
“I think that’s going to remain in place, as far as I know,” he said. “I think what’s more frightening to me is: President Trump has been denying disaster declarations and saying states have to do more for that. That, for us, could be catastrophic, and that’s why we have to keep these lines of credit open — different sources — where we can respond immediately to a major disaster.”
Trump denied federal disaster relief requested by Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee after a series of tornadoes killed dozens of people in that state in March.