The Coachella and Stagecoach music festivals were canceled yet again on Friday due to concerns about the spread of the coronavirus.
The massively popular music festivals in Indio, California, had been slated to return starting April 9, but Riverside County's top health official said the pandemic was too out of control to risk holding the events, which draw thousands of people from across the world.
Due to the pandemic, Public Health Officer Dr. Cameron Kaiser today (Jan. 29) signed a public health order canceling Coachella Valley Music and Arts, Stagecoach Country Music festivals planned for April 2021. We look forward to when the events may return. https://t.co/YAIn8uTea9
"This Order recognizes that both the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival and Stagecoach Music Festival are music concerts and gatherings of an international scope, attracting hundreds of thousands of attendees from many countries, including several disproportionately afflicted by the worldwide COVID-19 pandemic," the health order states. "This order is intended to reduce the likelihood of exposure to COVID-19, thereby slowing the spread of COVID-19 in communities worldwide."
Any hope that the festivals might be rescheduled for the fall was also dashed, as the pandemic could surge again with cooler temperatures.
"If COVID-19 were detected at these festivals, the scope and number of attendees and the nature of the venue would make it infeasible, if not impossible, to track those who may be placed at risk," the health order adds.
Goldenvoice, which puts on the festivals, did not immediately comment on the decision — but after the county canceled the events in 2020, the company said, "We have every intention of returning in 2021."
It isn't clear what will happen to ticket holders who had rolled over their passes to this year.
Sad.