Pandemic cancels St James Christmas Eve bonfire celebration americanpress.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from americanpress.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Annual Lighting of the Bonfires ceremony in St James Parish canceled fox8live.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from fox8live.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Embers from St. James Parish bonfires stacked like Christmas trees light the Mississippi River levee in Gramercy, La. Sunday, Dec. 24, 2017. Dozens of bonfires line the levee along River Road in three towns: Lutcher, Gramercy, and Paulina, Louisiana in the so-called bonfire capital of the world. The tradition is supposed to light the way for Papa Noel, the Cajun Santa Claus, on Christmas Eve so he can deliver presents for Christmas Day.
Advocate staff photo by MATTHEW HINTON
Submitted photo
Updated: 4:46 PM CST Dec 9, 2020 WDSU Digital Team St. James Parish officials announced Wednesday that the annual Christmas Eve bonfires will be canceled because of the coronavirus pandemic. The parish made the announcement on its Facebook page. The post read: After long consideration and consultation with state and local agencies, the Unified Command Group in St. James Parish has made the difficult decision to cancel the lighting of the bonfires on Christmas Eve. Over the last several weeks, the Unified Command Group has met to determine all possible alternatives for safely continuing with this tradition, however, the latest announcement earlier today of a 16.9% positivity rate has required the cancellation of this event. The post also said that Parish President Pete Dufresne would host a Facebook Live discussion on Thursday to address in more detail how the decision was made, permit refunds and deconstructing previously built bonfires. If you have not