Sue to the high risk posed by COVID-19, the popular Coachella music festival billed to hold in Southern California in April has been cancelled.
The news was disclosed by a local public health official, Dr Cameron Kaiser, via social media on Saturday, with three months to the event.
The annual event – one of the world’s largest and best-known music festivals – was scheduled to go ahead over two weekends in April in Riverside County.
Kaiser blamed the cancellation on the dire Covid-19 situation in the region as health officials in California announced the state had surpassed 40,000 coronavirus-related deaths.
“Due to the pandemic, Public Health Officer Dr. Cameron Kaiser today (Jan. 29) signed a public health order canceling Coachella Valley Music and Arts, Stagecoach Country Music festivals planned for April 2021. We look forward to when the events may return,” Kasier tweeted.
Due to the pandemic, Public Health Officer Dr. Cameron Kaiser today (Jan. 29) signed a public health order canceling Coachella Valley Music and Arts, Stagecoach Country Music festivals planned for April 2021. We look forward to when the events may return. https://t.co/YAIn8uTea9
— Dr. Cameron Kaiser (@RivCoDoc) January 29, 2021
The Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival takes place in the Indio desert near Palm Springs and attracted about 250,000 attendees in 2019, while Stagecoach draws more than 70,000 country music fans.
Recall that in March last year organisers pushed the festival, which was set to be headlined by Travis Scott, Frank Ocean and Rage Against the Machine, from April to October, before those dates were also cancelled with the virus still raging across the US.
In 2019, Mr Eazi and Burna Boy became the only musicians from the whole of west Africa to perform at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival.
