Adelaide City Council cancels 9pm New Year’s Eve fireworks due to COVID-19 concerns
Adelaide City Council has cancelled this year’s 9pm New Year’s Eve fireworks celebrations due to COVID-19 safety risks – but other events will still be held across Adelaide to ensure physical distancing.
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Adelaide City Council’s New Year’s Eve celebration is the latest event to fall victim to COVID-19.
The continued uncertainty around restrictions has led to the cancellation of the Elder Park 9pm party and fireworks.
The decision was made in consultation with SA Health, SA Police and industry stakeholders.
Lord Mayor Sandy Verschoor said the celebrations would instead move onto the streets of Adelaide and North Adelaide with live music, roving performers and outdoor seating on footpaths and roads.
The council is also investigating a five-minute pyrotechnics display at midnight, along with hybrid lighting elements from city buildings.
Several Parklands sites are also being investigated for larger pyrotechnic displays. This will provide the opportunity for those in surrounding suburbs to enjoy the display from their homes.
The New Year’s Eve celebration last year attracted 80,000 people.
“Under the current restrictions we’d only be able to have about 18,000 people (this year),” Ms Verschoor said.
“We’ve decided rather than doing that, we were going to spread it out across the city and North Adelaide, encourage all of our businesses to come out and people to come in and enjoy themselves.
“And then when the fireworks go off we’re going to put them probably at about a couple of ground sites and maybe four building rooftops around the city. So that you’ll be able to see it wherever you are in the city and North Adelaide so people can celebrate together.”
On Friday, Adelaide’s flagship Carols by Candlelight also were cancelled after organisers said they could not guarantee safety or COVID-19 social distancing.
More than 30,000 spectators pack out Elder Park for the traditional singing event that was first launched in 1944.
However, the 2020 Christmas Pageant will go ahead in a smaller format at the Adelaide Oval.
Up 25,000 people will pack Adelaide Oval on November 14 for a historic twilight Christmas pageant in what official say will be a theatrical production complete with singing, dancing and possibly a celebrity MC.