Entertainment

Austin officials cancel South by Southwest festival | Entertainment

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) Organizers of South By Southwest, which attracts hundreds of thousands of visitors and some of Hollywood's biggest music stars, announced Friday that they have canceled the annual festival of arts and technology, saying they were devastated "but recognize that it is necessary to avoid a serious threat of contagion.

Mayor Steve Adler announced a local disaster Friday afternoon as a precaution due to the rapid spread of the new coronavirus, effectively canceling the annual event that was scheduled to take place March 13-22. Travis County Judge Sarah Eckhardt, the best elected in the county, has signed a disaster accompaniment statement for the county surrounding Austin. The order has prohibited festival gatherings that could attract people from areas where COVID-19 has been found.

No one in the Austin area has been found infected with the virus, said Eckhardt. However, South by Southwest had to attract international audiences to tight quarters, which posed a serious threat of the spread of the disease.

Festival organizers noted that Austin Public Health said last Wednesday that there was no evidence that closing SXSW or any other gathering would make the community safer, "but that the situation has evolved rapidly and they respect the decision of the officials.

We are delighted to share this news with you, "the organizers said in their statement." The show must go on "is in our DNA, and it is the first time in 34 years that the March event will not take place. We are working on the ramifications of this unprecedented situation.

South By Southwest started in 1987 as a small showcase for emerging bands that has turned into an international extravagance, which now includes film premieres and performances by major artists.

The COVID-19 threat is growing rapidly nationwide, said Dr. Mark Escott, Acting Medical Director and Health Authority of Austin Public Health.

This threat is growing locally due to what is happening in the rest of the United States and around the world, said Escott.

The number of deaths in the United States from coronavirus has risen to 14, with all victims except one in Washington State, while the number of infections has risen to more than 200, spread across at least 18 states, of which at least eight cases in the Houston area.

The announcement comes days after several leading companies, including Netflix, Mashable media, video-based social media platform TikTok, and US chip maker Intel, took of of the festival.

Over 50,000 people had signed a petition to cancel the festival.

Actor Kumail Nanjiani, who was to attend the festival to promote The Lovebirds, said on Twitter that he was disappointed but that he understood.

Sxsw is one of my favorite festivals, "he tweeted." Canceling it was the responsible thing. I know it sucks for a lot of people for whom it was a huge opportunity. But were sort of in an unprecedented situation here and caution is advised. Thanks for making the right decision.

New York-based media producer Stephen Stuart, 35, said he bought a $ 1,200 pass but was glad the event was canceled.

There are hundreds of thousands of people coming from all over the world. They all travel, they all go to this place, then they are all pushed into these rooms confined to each other. It is not really conducive not to spread an illness.

Stuart said he doesn't know if his ticket will be refunded.

It is not the first time that a negative cloud has been projected on the festival. A driver plowed in a crowd outside of SXSW in 2014, killing two and injuring 23 others.

Last year, the festival attracted 73,716 attendees, including 19,166 from outside the U.S. Combined with SXSW's games expo and education conference, the & rsquo; The 2019 event drew 417,400 participants, organizers said. An economic impact report found that it contributed $ 355.9 million to the local economy.

Wallace reported from Dallas. The Associated Press author Cedar Attanasio in Dallas contributed to this report.

The Associated Press receives support for health and science coverage from the science education department of the Howard Hughes Medical Institutes. The AP is solely responsible for all content.

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