World-Famous Rio De Janeiro, Sao Paulo Carnival Street Parades Postponed as COVID Cases Spike in Brazil
Rio de Janeiro Carnival street parades in Brazil will not happen as planned. Instead of happening in the final week of February, the festivities in the world-known city were moved in late April.
RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL - MARCH 02: Queen of Percussion Evelyn Bastos of Mangueira celebrates during their parade at 2014 Brazilian Carnival at Sapucai Sambadrome on March 02, 2014 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Rio's two nights of Carnival parades begin on March 2 in a burst of fireworks and to the cheers of thousands of tourists and locals who have previously enjoyed street celebrations (known as "blocos de rua") all around the city.
This is not the first time that the parades have been delayed. In 2020, the city's officials also decided to move the festivities because of the global COVID pandemic.
Now, the ongoing health crisis has once again forced Rio de Janeiro Mayor Eduardo Paes to do the same thing this year.
According to Channel News Asia, the Carnival activities were moved to prevent the further spread of the new COVID-19 Omicron variant.
Rio de Janeiro Carnival Street Parades in Brazil Delayed
NPR reported that Rio de Janeiro, together with Sao Paolo, another popular city in Brazil, decided to hold the parades until April 21.
RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL - MARCH 03: Members of Unidos da Tijuca Samba School during their parade at 2014 Brazilian Carnival at Sapucai Sambadrome on March 03, 2014 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Rio's two nights of Carnival parades began on March 2 in a burst of fireworks and to the cheers of thousands of tourists and locals who have previously enjoyed street celebrations (known as "blocos de rua") all around the city.
Rio de Janeiro's mayor and his Sao Paulo counterpart, Mayor Ricardo Nunes, conducted a video call to discuss the health crisis in Brazil. They coordinated with their health secretaries so that they could properly decide on what to do next.
"The decision was made respecting for the current situation of the COVID-19 pandemic in Brazil and the need, at this time, to preserve lives and join forces to drive vaccination throughout the country," as stated in the joint letter of Sau Paulo and Rio de Janeiro cities on Friday.
Samba School Parades in Brazil Will Still Happen
Despite the sad news from the city mayors, the popular Sapucaí carnival, the parade performed by Rio's samba schools, will still happen as planned. Paes clarified that these festivities would proceed at the Sambadrome just like before, without any delay, because authorities can control who goes into the stadium.
Participants and viewers are required to show their vaccination statuses and their negative COVID-19 test results before they can enter the arena.
As of the moment, both of the cities are still trying their best to lessen the coronavirus cases. Aside from Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo, some cities in Brazil also canceled their street parades. These include Teresina, Belem, Fortaleza, Florianopolis, Salvador, Campo Grande, Cuiaba, and Curitiba, as reported by CNN Travel.
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