Port of Spain, Trinidad, September 29 — The COVID-19 pandemic has forced officials to cancel one of the biggest carnival celebrations in the Caribbean.
Trinidad & Tobago Prime Minister Keith Rowley said Monday that next year’s carnival will not be held.
The announcement was a blow for the twin-island nation, which has been struggling through an economic crisis. The event held before Ash Wednesday attracts thousands of visitors every year, and generated more than $3 million last year.
The announcement came a week after authorities in Rio de Janeiro cancelled that city’s famed carnival celebration, which had been scheduled for February, for the first time in a century.
Trinidad & Tobago, a nation of 1.2 million people, has reported more than 4,300 confirmed cases of COVID-19 and more than 70 deaths. The government is currently limiting social gatherings to five people.
