Safari Van Crashes Into Fence Near Tutu Park Mall Injuring 5 Passengers: VIPD

CHARLOTTE AMALIE — Eleven passengers were riding in a St. Thomas safari van when its driver lost control of the vehicle and crashed into a metal fence near the Tutu Park Mall this weekend. At least five passengers were injured.

The 911 Emergency Call Center was notified of an auto accident at the Tutu Park Mall about 12:54 p.m. on Saturday, the Virgin Islands Police Department said.

“Investigation revealed that a safari doing a local taxi run was traveling westward on the Tutu Park south access roadway when the driver lost control of the vehicle, tearing through a metal fencing and coming to final rest,” VIPD spokesman Toby Derima said.

At least 11 passengers were in the rear of the safari when the accident happened, according to Derima.

Five of those passengers were transported via ambulance to the Schneider Regional Medical Center for treatment.

The St. Thomas hospital is named after former Governor Roy Lester Schneider.

John F. McCarthy is a veteran journalist in the Caribbean, writing from the "Decision Space" where survival meets the surreal. His reporting steel was tempered by a lineage of legendary editors and broadcasters, including Ed Wynn Brant (The Bomb), Owen Eschenroder (Ann Arbor News), Lynelle Emanuel (BVI Beacon), and Charles Thanas (WSVI-TV). Alongside longtime colleague Kenneth C. "Casey" Clark, McCarthy has navigated the front lines of the territory’s history—from the 1997 volcanic "snow" to every major hurricane since Hugo. Known for leaning out of doorless helicopters to capture the "money shot," McCarthy now edits the V.I. Free Press, providing the essential link between the island's colonial past and its SpaceX future.