Coachella and Stagecoach postponed over coronavirus fears

The Coachella and Stagecoach musical festivals have been postponed until October due to concerns about the coronavirus outbreak in the U.S., concert organizers said Tuesday.

The move comes as the number of confirmed coronavirus cases in the country continues to increase, causing businesses and schools to shutter and officials in some cities and states to warn against large gatherings. 

“While this decision comes at at time of universal uncertainty, we take safety and health of our guests, staff and community very seriously,” concert promoter Goldenvoice said in a statement. “We urge everyone to follow the guidelines and protocols put forth by health officials.”

pic.twitter.com/ppPdu7WX9b

— Coachella (@coachella) March 10, 2020

Coachella is now set to take place over the course of six days in October. Stagecoach will be held Oct. 23-25. All ticket purchases for what were intended to be April festivals will transfer over to the new dates, Goldenvoice said. Ticket purchasers will also receive information about how to obtain a refund if they are unable to attend the new festival dates.

The music festivals, held at the Empire Polo Club in Indio, Calif., draw tens of thousands of people each year. Coachella was expected to draw up to 250,000 people over the course of two weekends in April. Coachella is reportedly hoping to feature many of the same acts previously scheduled to take place next month. 

Festivals and other public gatherings around the country are being postponed or outright canceled due to concerns over the coronavirus. South by Southwest, the technology, music and film festival in Austin, Texas, canceled the 34th annual event last week as the city’s mayor declared a local disaster. 

The March festival was expected to bring hundreds of thousands people to the Texas city between March 13 and March 22. The announcement came after representatives from several high-profile companies, including Netflix, TikTok and Facebook, said they would not be attending. 

The St. Patrick’s Day parade in Boston has also been canceled over fears of a potential outbreak, while the NCAA announced Tuesday that it was continuing to “assess” how the virus would impact its tournaments and events. The organization said that it would make a decision in the coming days. 

The NCAA men’s and women’s basketball tournaments are scheduled to begin later this month. The men’s tournament earns the NCAA hundreds of millions of dollars each year thanks to media rights fees and sponsorships.

The U.S. had confirmed 959 cases of the coronavirus as of Tuesday evening, according to a Johns Hopkins University database. Dr. Anthony Fauci, a top official at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said at a White House briefing that the public needed to prepare for outbreaks in their communities. 

“It doesn’t matter if you’re in a state that has no cases or one case, you have to start taking seriously what you can do now, if and when the infections will come, and they will come,” he said.

Updated: 8:06 p.m.