For many Jamaicans, Reggae Sumfest is more than a celebration of music. It is an opportunity to earn.

That hope was dampened for several vendors on Saturday evening after law enforcement officers instructed them to remove their stalls from outside the gates of Plantation Cove, where a no-vending zone had been established for the festival.

The operation left many visibly upset, with some fighting back tears as they dismantled makeshift kitchens and packed away pots of soup, jerk chicken and other food items they had spent hours — and in some cases days — preparing.