SXSW MUSIC FESTIVAL CANCELLED DUE TO CORONAVIRUS CONCERNS
The iconic South by Southwest (SXSW) music and arts festival in Austin has been cancelled due to growing fears about the new coronavirus.
Event organizers made the announcement this (Friday) afternoon at a news conference. The festival, which was set to begin next Friday and run through March 22nd, annually brings hundreds of thousands of music, technology, and pop culture enthusiasts to downtown Austin.
Austin Mayor Steve Adler declared a local disaster as a precaution against the virus, which effectively forced the event to be cancelled. The event was already hit hard by virus fears before its cancellation, as several companies and celebrities had announced they would not be attending the event due to concerns about the virus.
Preceding today’s announcement, event organizers were planning to continue with SXSW as normal, despite over 50,000 people signing a petition calling for the event to be cancelled.
Organizers said in a tweet that, according to Austin Public Health, there was no evidence that cancelling the festival or any other gatherings would make the community safer. They said, however, that the situation evolved rapidly and that they honor and respect the decision by the City of Austin.
Organizers said they are exploring the possibility of rescheduling the event, and are looking at providing a “virtual SXSW online experience as soon as possible for 2020 participants”.