The Omicron variant of Covid-19 is increasingly scary in Brazil, so much so that the Rio de Janeiro authorities have decided to suspend the traditional carnival parades. The mayor of the city, Eduardo Paes, announced it with a live broadcast on social networks, after a meeting with the representatives of the neighborhood musical groups (the "blocos"), which usually animate the party.
The parade of the samba schools at the Sambodromo remains confirmed for now at the end of February.
Paes said it had been proposed to organize events in three different parts of the city, but the blocos did not accept as they intended to make him a "counter-offer".
For the second time, therefore, the Rio carnival is canceled for reasons related to the pandemic. Brazil, after the US, is the second most affected country in the world with around 620,000 deaths.
(Unioneonline / ss)