Sydney might be on schedule to reopen but it looks like the city won’t be celebrating with some nice NYE evening fireworks.
As reported by the Sydney Morning Herald, The City of Sydney has cancelled this year’s New Year’s Eve family fireworks display despite NSW’s scheduled reopening in the coming weeks. They said the decision was a necessary one in order to keep the event “resilient” as the uncertainty surrounding COVID-19 continues.
The SMH were given access to a leaked email from the City of Sydney to stakeholders, which stated that the council will copy 2020’s format and cancel the classic 9pm fireworks, as well as the Harbour of Light Parade and the Lord Mayor’s Picnic.
A council spokesman confirmed the sad news about the 9pm display. “The fireworks always generate very large crowds and the two separate displays result in the crossover of large numbers of people leaving for one show and arriving for the next,” he said. “In the current climate, limiting this mixing of crowds will ensure the event can be managed in the most COVID-safe way for all attendees and staff.”
It’s not all bad news though as the traditional midnight fireworks display is still scheduled to take place, although crowd arrangements are still being sorted.
“This format will allow Sydney New Year’s Eve to remain resilient in the face of continuing uncertainty and help stakeholders, businesses, and visitors formulate their plans,” Lauren Schwabe, City of Sydney’s crowd and traffic manager, said. “We will continue to work with the NSW government to assess the impact of the pandemic on the event. The operational requirements of the event, including crowd densities and capacities, are still being determined, with multiple scenarios being developed.”
The news comes as Sydney’s long lockdown is about to hopefully end once 70% of NSW’s adult population is fully vaccinated, expected to happen around mid-October.
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Check out last year’s NYE fireworks display in Sydney:
