Rio de Janeiro has cancelled its world-famous Carnival street parades due to , the city's mayor Eduardo Paes announced Tuesday during a YouTube live stream.
"We had a meeting today with the people from the "blocos" (organized street parties), and we informed them that the street carnival, which didn't take place in 2021, cannot happen (again) this year due to the epidemiological data that we have," Paes said.
"It would be very difficult to organize a street carnival," Paes said. The Sapucaí carnival -- the parade performed by Rio's samba schools, which people watch from the stands of the Marques de Sapucaí Sambadrome stadium -- will still take place in accordance with health protocols, he added.
On Tuesday, January 5, Brazil's health ministry reported 18,759 new cases of COVID-19 and 175 deaths.
