Sao Paulo’s Street Carnival Is Canceled To Avoid Omicron Spread

After a meeting with health authorities, Sao Paulo Mayor Ricardo Nunes canceled the 2022 street carnival due to the rebound of COVID-19 cases in a city that has 12 million inhabitants.

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Similar to the decisions made in Rio de Janeiro, the Sao Paulo City Hall stated that the multitudinous carnival groups will not be able to circulate on the streets. However, the parades of the samba schools might be held at the Anhembi sambadrome during the last week of February.

"We will talk with the League of Samba Schools to agree on an epidemiological protocol for the parades at the sambadrome. If the League accepts it, the parades will continue," Nunes pointed out.

Sao Paulo Scientific Committee spokesperson Joao Gabbardo explained that the realization of the street carnival was unthinkable at this time because people will generate crowds in public transport, which will significantly increase the risk of contagion.

A PowerData poll revealed that the Bolsonaro administration is "bad or very bad" for 57 percent of citizens. Bolsonaro's negative assessment has been in place since the middle of the first half of 2021. The sign reads, "Out with Bolsonaro."

For the second year in a row, street parties have also been canceled in a dozen sub-national capitals, among which is Salvador, a city that usually attracts millions of people for carnival.

Cities such as Florianopolis (SC), Olinda (PE), and Sao Luiz de Paraitinga (SP) also canceled the street carnival, outlet UOL reported, recalling that Rio de Janeiro Mayor Eduardo Paes informed that his city will include COVID-19 tests and presentation of the vaccination pass among the protocols that samba schools must comply with in order to carry out their parades.

"Increase in COVID-19 cases, flue outbreaks, and the advancement of the Omicron variant have been among the main reasons highlighted by municipalities for the cancellation of street carnivals," UOL added.