In the wake of rising cases and the spread of the new Covid variant omicron, major cities around the world are being forced to cancel their big New Year's celebrations. Below, we've listed some cities whose traditionally famous festivities have either been minimized or canceled altogether.
London
More than a week ago, London Mayor Sadiq Khan announced via Twitter that ”Due to the increase in Covid cases, we have made the difficult decision to cancel our New Year’s Eve event in Trafalgar Square.” Ticket holders had been expecting an evening of live music, food stalls and a big screen in the square, the statement said. BBC.
The celebration, which was expected to accommodate 6,500 people, is now being replaced with a live broadcast which summarizes the city's notable events in 2021, which Khan urges people to follow from home.
The event in Trafalgar Square was already a replacement for London's New Year's Eve fireworks display, which was canceled for the second year in a row due to the pandemic.
Berlin
In Germany, and mainly Berlin, celebrations are expected to be held at a non-existent level if Chancellor Olaf Scholz gets his way. From Tuesday, December 28, a maximum of ten people are allowed to meet in groups, regardless of whether they are vaccinated or healthy, writes CNN.
This means that no large fireworks display will be held in the capital Berlin, nor at other large gathering places in, for example, Munich and Frankfurt.
Paris
Even in the city of love, Paris, the traditional fireworks display over the Champs-Elysées avenue is being canceled. ”The fireworks will not take place, and unfortunately there will be no DJ sets,” the mayor’s office told AFP.
French Prime Minister Jean Castex announced earlier in December that large public parties and fireworks would be banned on New Year's Eve. He also recommended that even vaccinated people take a self-test before gathering for end-of-year celebrations, according to Reuters.
Wearing a mask is mandatory in public places outdoors in Paris from today, December 31, according to French police.
Rome/Venice
In Italy, Rome is one of several cities that have decided to cancel festivities due to the risk of infection. Large New Year's celebrations across the country have been stopped, including outdoor concerts and fireworks in Venice, CNN reports.
Nightclubs will be closed throughout the month of January.
New York
Despite the record numbers of Covid cases in the US, the situation is being taken a little easier in one of the world's most festive cities, New York.
The city is moving forward with its scaled-down event plans for Times Square, according to USA Today. "We want to show that we are moving forward, and we want to show the world that the city of New York is fighting our way through this," Mayor Bill de Blasio said in an interview on The Today Show on Thursday.
The city will require people attending the celebration to show proof of vaccination and photo identification, as well as to wear masks. The event normally attracts 58,000 people, but this year it will be limited to about 15,000 participants and will not allow entry until 3 p.m. local time, the mayor announced last week.
Source: svt.se
