Vandals broke the lock on a signal control box Thursday night at the Nisky Center/ Pueblo intersections, which resulted in the shutdown of the traffic signal system.
The incident prompted the Public Works Department to issue a statement Friday saying tampering with traffic signal control boxes could lead to federal prosecution.
The release said other traffic control boxes have been vandalized too but gave no specifics.

Bolongo Bay Beach Club and Villas will host the St. Thomas-St.John Chamber of Commerce Business After Hours from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. June 22.
The event will be held at Lord Rumbottoms.

The St. Thomas-St. John Chamber of Commerce has joined Sen. V. Anne Golden in strongly criticizing the V.I. Banking Board for placing conditions on its approval of V.I. Community Bank's acquisition of Chase Manhattan Bank's local assets.
In a release from the chamber, John P. deJongh Jr., chamber president, said, "The government is overstepping its bounds in dictating the composition of a board of directors of a private entity, irrespective of whether the granting of tax benefits are involved."
The banking board has stipulated as a condition of its approval government authorization of 30 percent of VICB’s directors. The regulatory board also imposed a $300,000 annual banking fee, which deJongh said amounted to "double taxation."
"Government agencies and commissioners must not continue to stifle private sector expansion and investment in our weak economy," deJongh said. "Decisions such as this directly contradict Governor Turnbull's recent remarks [about his intention]to foster and expand investment in the Virgin Islands economy."
In addition to serving as chamber president, deJongh chaired the Economic Recovery Task Force appointed by the governor to come up with a plan to deal with the territory's fiscal crisis. He was one of the primary architects of the five-year plan it submitted to the governor a month ago. The plan relies largely on developing the private sector in order to bail out the sinking Virgin Islands economy.
The chamber release called on the V.I. Banking Board to rescind its conditions on the annual fee and board composition.
For details on the conditions of the Banking Board approval click here.

The St. Thomas-St. John Chamber of Commerce has joined Sen. V. Anne Golden in strongly criticizing the V.I. Banking Board for placing conditions on its approval of V.I. Community Bank's acquisition of Chase Manhattan Bank's local assets.
In a release from the chamber, John P. deJongh Jr., chamber president, said, "The government is overstepping its bounds in dictating the composition of a board of directors of a private entity, irrespective of whether the granting of tax benefits are involved."
The banking board has stipulated as a condition of its approval government authorization of 30 percent of VICB’s directors. The regulatory board also imposed a $300,000 annual banking fee, which deJongh said amounted to "double taxation."
"Government agencies and commissioners must not continue to stifle private sector expansion and investment in our weak economy," deJongh said. "Decisions such as this directly contradict Governor Turnbull's recent remarks [about his intention]to foster and expand investment in the Virgin Islands economy."
In addition to serving as chamber president, deJongh chaired the Economic Recovery Task Force appointed by the governor to come up with a plan to deal with the territory's fiscal crisis. He was one of the primary architects of the five-year plan it submitted to the governor a month ago. The plan relies largely on developing the private sector in order to bail out the sinking Virgin Islands economy.
The chamber release called on the V.I. Banking Board to rescind its conditions on the annual fee and board composition.
For details on the conditions of the Banking Board approval click here.

Abraham L. Tarapani, the son of Abraham and Wendy Tarapani and a senior at Antilles School, has been named a Presidential Scholar.
The U.S. Presidential Scholars Program was established in 1964 to recognize distinguished high school seniors. This year, 141 students nationwide were selected for the honor. A total of 500 finalists, selected on the basis of high Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) scores, were then judged on the bases of an essay and school records of leadership, academics, service and character. A panel named by the President made the final selections.
Tarapani and one other winner were chosen from among students of "citizens abroad" including those in all the territories and on military and diplomatic assignment. The honor has been bestowed only once before on an Antilles student, Deborah Brandstatter in 1975, according to the school's development director, Joan Amerling.
Tarapani and his family will travel to Washington, D.C., (all expenses paid) for National Recognition Week, June 27 – July 2. They will stay in a dormitory at Georgetown University, visit museums and attend ceremonies and recitals. The Presidential Scholar medallions will be presented at a ceremony in the Rose Garden of the White House.
An Antilles student since he was 5 years old, Tarapani has had a memorable senior year. He has served as president of the Class of 2000 and treasurer of the National Honor Society, participated in every varsity sport and in drama productions, been on the school's Quiz Bowl and Science Bowl teams, and received the Martin Luther King Jr. Community Service Award from the Hebrew Congregation of St. Thomas. He also is a National Merit Scholar finalist.
The last two summers, Tarapani took college computer, math, science and philosophy courses at Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Brandeis University. He also completed several advanced courses at Antilles. When he begins study at Yale University in the fall, he will already have completed most of the first-year requirements and looks forward "to picking and choosing from some more advanced courses that will give me a better idea of what I want to major in." He is leaning toward engineering with an emphasis on business, too, but is equally comfortable in the humanities.
The Presidential Scholars program honors not only the chosen students but also the educators they identify as having most influenced them. Tarapani's honoree is Roger Lakins, head of the Antilles English Department. Lakins, who taught Tarapani in English, humanities and music classes for five years, will also travel to Washington and receive a Teacher Recognition Award.
"I knew that he was quite special very early in our working relationship," Lakins says of his pupil. "He has always loved learning and went through a very early, precocious stage of the thousand how's and why's. He is a true budding scholar. His gift is his eagerness to understand and know things on a deeper level, rather than simply memorize facts for a test."
Tarapani says he's excited about the honor and the trip to Washington. But right now, he says, he's preoccupied with "the valedictory address I have to give at graduation." He indicated that his speech at the commencement exercises on June 9 will concentrate on his fellow students and their concerns.

The Caribbean is the world's dominant cruise region, with 45 percent of the market, but that could change if it doesn't expand to meet the needs of the growing industry, Edward Thomas, president of The West Indian Company Ltd., told 40 students taking part in the Future Global Leaders conference on the St. Thomas campus of the University of the Virgin Islands.
Thomas said the region should see a "proliferation of mega-ships in the years ahead," adding, "that means more and bigger ships and lots more persons on our beaches and in our ports." But, he said, the day Cuba opens to U.S. visitors, all that could change.
Should Cuba open to cruise ships from the United States, Thomas said, new itineraries including calls at Cuban ports will be implemented immediately. Havana will most likely replace the Bahamas on three- and four-day itineraries, and Jamaica on seven-day Western Caribbean routes. Thomas said, "Any negative effects may be short-term, since first-time cruisers who are attracted by the draw of Cuba should return for cruises to the Eastern Caribbean once the novelty wears off."
The cruise industry contributed $5.4 billion to the Caribbean economy in 1999, Thomas told the students. To remain competitive, he said, the region must be prepared to support the expanding industry. "Aruba is in the process of relocating cargo facilities out of downtown Orangestad, leaving the area as a dedicated cruise ship port with modern terminals and berths," he said. Thomas said other islands involved in capital projects include St. Martin, the Bahamas and St. Thomas, where work is under way to strengthen the western end of the WICO dock.
Thomas challenged the students to return to their home districts and "work with your chambers of commerce or equivalent organizations to ensure that a significant amount of supplies are purchased in your islands."
He told the students that the African-Caribbean trade bill signed recently by President Clinton will encourage U.S.-based manufacturers to establish processing and manufacturing plants in this region. But he said the Caribbean cannot allow this victory to detract from the need to be dominant in the tourism field, since it is a major source of revenue in the globally competitive marketplace.

The Caribbean is the world's dominant cruise region, with 45 percent of the market, but that could change if it doesn't expand to meet the needs of the growing industry, Edward Thomas, president of The West Indian Company Ltd., told 40 students taking part in the Future Global Leaders Conference on the St. Thomas campus of the University of the Virgin Islands.
Thomas said the region should see a "proliferation of mega-ships in the years ahead," adding, "that means more and bigger ships and lots more persons on our beaches and in our ports." But, he said, the day Cuba opens to U.S. visitors, all that could change.
Should Cuba open to cruise ships from the United States, Thomas said, new itineraries including calls at Cuban ports will be implemented immediately. Havana will most likely replace the Bahamas on three- and four-day itineraries, and Jamaica on seven-day Western Caribbean routes. Thomas said, "Any negative effects may be short-term, since first-time cruisers who are attracted by the draw of Cuba should return for cruises to the Eastern Caribbean once the novelty wears off."
The cruise industry contributed $5.4 billion to the Caribbean economy in 1999, Thomas told the students. To remain competitive, he said, the region must be prepared to support the expanding industry. "Aruba is in the process of relocating cargo facilities out of downtown Orangestad, leaving the area as a dedicated cruise ship port with modern terminals and berths," he said. Thomas said other islands involved in capital projects include St. Martin, the Bahamas and St. Thomas, where work is under way to strengthen the western end of the WICO dock.
Thomas challenged the students to return to their home districts and "work with your chambers of commerce or equivalent organizations to ensure that a significant amount of supplies are purchased in your islands."
He told the students that the African-Caribbean trade bill signed recently by President Clinton will encourage U.S.-based manufacturers to establish processing and manufacturing plants in this region. But he said the Caribbean cannot allow this victory to detract from the need to be dominant in the tourism field, since it is a major source of revenue in the globally competitive marketplace.

The Safety Zone will hold its fourth annual fashion show at 6 p.m. Friday, June 2 at the Equator room at Caneel Bay Resort.
For details click here.

The Safety Zone will hold its fourth annual fashion show at 6 p.m. Friday, June 2 at the Equator room at Caneel Bay Resort.
"This is one of the major social events of the year on St. John. It brings together every segment of the community with donations from virtually every shop on the island," said Iris Kern.
Kern is the director of the Safety Zone, an advocacy organization providing social services to residents of St. John.
"The theme of the fashion show is 'Play'," she said. "In this land of sun and fun, we think play is number one."
Jan Trainor, whose talents as a fashion coordinator are highly praised by Kern, has selected the clothes. "She has such good visualization, selecting just the right outfit for each male and female model."
Sam Topp will be the master of ceremonies. Carlie Powell and the Paradise People will provide live music. Barbie Berry will serve as the DJ for a portion of the evening.
There will be 64 models ranging from 8 months old to seniors, from infants to size 24. They will include Carlos deBiasi, Linda Smith Palmer, Carmen Wesselhoft, Ina Lee, Peter Alter, Sherece Smith and Julien Harley. The grand event of the evening will be a wedding with Robert Luke as the groom (chill, ladies, it is not official).
The evening begins with hors d'oeuvres prepared by Tropical Foods, Marina Market, Caneel Bay and Katy Lady Catering. Two drinks are part of the ticket price and a cash bar will operate throughout the evening.
Raffle tickets at $5. each or five for $20. will be sold. The prizes are gift certificates from Columbian Emeralds ($500.) and Kariba ($300.), dinner for two at the Westin ($250.), a full body massage, and a pedicure/manicure.
A silent auction will also be held with items from each of the shops who will have merchandise in the fashion show, a golf package, and a weekend at Caneel among the items to be auctioned.
Donation is $35. per person. Tickets can be purchased at St. John Drug Center or Connections on St. John and Red Hook Mail Services on St. Thomas. For more information, call Dr. Iris Kern at 690-SAFE or 693-SAFE.

The Safety Zone will hold its fourth annual fashion show at 6 p.m. Friday, June 2 at the Equator room at Caneel Bay Resort.
"This is one of the major social events of the year on St. John. It brings together every segment of the community with donations from virtually every shop on the island," said Iris Kern.
Kern is the director of the Safety Zone, an advocacy organization providing social services to residents of St. John.
"The theme of the fashion show is 'Play'," she said. "In this land of sun and fun, we think play is number one."
Jan Trainor, whose talents as a fashion coordinator are highly praised by Kern, has selected the clothes. "She has such good visualization, selecting just the right outfit for each male and female model."
Sam Topp will be the master of ceremonies. Carlie Powell and the Paradise People will provide live music. Barbie Berry will serve as the DJ for a portion of the evening.
There will be 64 models ranging from 8 months old to seniors, from infants to size 24. They will include Carlos deBiasi, Linda Smith Palmer, Carmen Wesselhoft, Ina Lee, Peter Alter, Sherece Smith and Julien Harley. The grand event of the evening will be a wedding with Robert Luke as the groom (chill, ladies, it is not official).
The evening begins with hors d'oeuvres prepared by Tropical Foods, Marina Market, Caneel Bay and Katy Lady Catering. Two drinks are part of the ticket price and a cash bar will operate throughout the evening.
Raffle tickets at $5. each or five for $20. will be sold. The prizes are gift certificates from Columbian Emeralds ($500.) and Kariba ($300.), dinner for two at the Westin ($250.), a full body massage, and a pedicure/manicure.
A silent auction will also be held with items from each of the shops who will have merchandise in the fashion show, a golf package, and a weekend at Caneel among the items to be auctioned.
Donation is $35. per person. Tickets can be purchased at St. John Drug Center or Connections on St. John and Red Hook Mail Services on St. Thomas. For more information, call Dr. Iris Kern at 690-SAFE or 693-SAFE.