by Donald Wood
Last updated: 8:31 AM ET, Wed November 18, 2020
Government officials in New Orleans announced the 2021 edition of the annual Mardi Gras celebration has been canceled due to the ongoing coronavirus outbreak.
According to The Associated Press, New Orleans city spokesman Beau Tidwell revealed Tuesday the annual parades had to be canceled based on a 250-person cap on outdoor crowds passed by the local government.
The Carnival season and Mardi Gras are New Orleans' biggest tourism draw.
"You can't have traditional parades with that small a group," Tidwell told The AP. "We have had nearly 1,000 new cases over the past 10 days."
While some groups have canceled their Mardi Gras plans, others in New Orleans are looking to work around the regulations and are developing ideas to continue the party under the current pandemic restrictions.
Mardi Gras parades are also prevalent in the areas surrounding New Orleans, with the nearby Jefferson Parish parade being one of the best in the state. Parish President Cynthia Lee Sheng said they are trying to find a way to safely hold the event, but did not rule out an outright cancellation.
"Today, I'm concerned about your dining room at Thanksgiving," Sheng said. "So, it's hard for me to envision us inviting large crowds unless something drastically changes with the numbers. And I don't want to kill hope. I have to be honest. I also don't want to give false promises."
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