The prefect recommends canceling the Dunkirk carnival

• The prefect of the North recommends to the organizers "to cancel all the carnival festivities", in Dunkirk because of the epidemic of Covid-19.

• The mayors of the agglomeration follow this recommendation by canceling the bands, these colorful parades which brighten up the streets.

• Prom organizers are meeting this week to make a decision.

No straight decision.

Monday afternoon, the prefect of the North simply recommended to the organizers "to cancel all carnival festivities", in Dunkirk because of the Covid-19 epidemic.

Until then, the prefecture had decided to suspend the holding of the carnival until February 15, but the carnival-goers hoped to save part of the season.

This will not be the case for the bands, these colorful parades that brighten up the streets every weekend in February and March.

All the mayors of the municipalities of the Dunkirk conurbation have decided to follow the prefectural recommendation to avoid exposing themselves to the slightest legal risk.

Decision this week

“No band planned on community territory will take place”, specifies a press release in which the mayors “now call on the responsibility of all carnival-goers to continue to respect barrier gestures and to fight against the pandemic”.

On the other hand, for the balls which take place at the Kursaal of Dunkirk, nothing is yet definitively recorded.

The organizers, grouped within the ABCD association, must meet this week to make a final decision.

The only certainty is that the Corsairs' ball, which was to take place on February 19, has been canceled.

"It's far too fair for us," explains Gérard Laridan, in charge of communication, at

.

"It's a shame that the prefecture did not position itself more clearly," notes Thomas Dancel, president of the ABCD.

The responsibility lies with us, but it is not we who have all the elements, the figures from the Regional Health Agency in particular.

»

" It's a disaster "

This belated “recommendation” thus risks disrupting the local economy.

“The organization of a ball is 200,000 euros on the table”, underlined at

Erick Verlet, president of the association Jeune France which takes care of the Gigolos, Gigolettes ball.

According to the honorary president of Les P'tits Louis, the association which manages the Oncle Cô ball, "cancelling the carnival for a third consecutive year is a disaster".

Because, apart from the traditional atmosphere that Dunkirk will miss, the festivities make it possible to make substantial donations to local charities.

But for the prefecture, the organization of the carnival seems incompatible with the epidemic situation.

“In the North, the incidence rate is close to 4,000 cases per 100,000 inhabitants, assures the authority, in a press release.

This rate is around 3,600 on the Dunkirk coast.

Even today, people are dying from the Covid in Dunkirk.

The white plan is still active in hospitals in the Hauts-de-France region, with an occupancy rate of critical care beds of 87%.

The prefect also recommends to the inhabitants “

not to organize at home this type of festivities conducive to gatherings and the spread of the virus”.

Lille

Carnival "underground" or not, the Dunkirk hospital overwhelmed by the arrival of the variant

Lille

Followers of the Dunkirk carnival defied sanitary measures

• Covid-19

• epidemic

• Coronavirus

• Carnival

• Prefect

• Lille

• Dunkirk

• 0 comment

• 0 share

  • Share on Messenger

  • Share on Facebook

  • Share on Twitter

  • Share on Flipboard

  • Share on Pinterest

  • Share on Linkedin

  • Send by Mail

• To safeguard

• A fault ?

• To print