Orange Crush festival organizers could face legal liability for throwing unpermitted event

Tybee Island’s largest unpermitted event may face new hurdles this year.

The Georgia Senate this week passed a bill that would hold Orange Crush’s organizers liable for the expenses incurred from security, emergency services, toilets and other public safety measures.

Orange Crush, which is hailed as "the biggest HBCU beach bash to hit the East Coast," is an annual event on Tybee Island attended primarily by Black college students from throughout the South.

The event has been held annually since 1988, but has been held without a permit since 1991, when Savannah State University severed its ties with the organizers of the event. It will be held this year April 19-21.

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Though nearby Savannah is now a majority-Black city, Tybee Island has remained predominantly white, with only 3.52% of its residents identifying as Black or African American. The beaches where Orange Crush is held have only allowed Black visitors since 1964, and in 2021, the festival’s original organizer moved the event to Jacksonville, Florida, citing “lack of resources, limited parking, civil rights violations, and political injustices.” However, other organizers have picked up the mantle to promote Orange Crush at Tybee.

“The original promoters had a fairly mild event. They were Savannah State kids who came down and had a good time, and they were manageable,” Tybee Mayor Brian West said. But due to social media, he added, “what's being promoted now attracts a much larger crowd and it's more than just college students.”

Last year, the event drew an estimated 50,000 people to the 3-square mile island, resulting in hours of standstill traffic on the one road linking the island to the mainland, blocking the pathway for emergency vehicles.

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Senate Bill 443, which was authored by state Sen. Ben Watson (R-Savannah), passed in a 47-1 vote on Thursday. The bill would hold promoters and organizers of unpermitted events like Orange Crush liable for all associated expenses incurred by local governments. Tybee officials estimate that the 2023 Orange Crush cost the city $187,000.

“Tybee Island is 3 miles long. It has a police force of about 14,” Watson said. “This will allow them to recoup their expenses for providing the security, emergency services, (portable toilets), and liability insurance.”

State Sen. Derek Mallow (D-Savannah) also spoke up in support of the bill, after ensuring that the legislation could not be used to retaliate against peaceful protesters.

The measure passed with bipartisan support, after only state Sen. Colton Moore (R-Trenton) voted against it.

West said he hopes the bill will help alleviate the rising costs of Orange Crush that Tybee has shouldered in recent years.

“I wish that it was just the regular Orange Crush that we used to have here,” he said. "Our community was not opposed to that group when they used to come, but what we have now is something we can't afford. We can't afford to spend what we spend each year on this, and hopefully this legislation will help us if we have to continue to do it in the future.”

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Destini Ambus contributed reporting to this article.

This article originally appeared on Savannah Morning News: Orange Crush: Organizers could be held liable for public safety costs