One of region’s biggest Labor Day weekend festivals and fireworks shows canceled

Riverfest 2020 typically draws hundreds of thousands of people to riverbanks for festival and fireworks.
Crowds watch a past Riverfest fireworks from a park overlooking downtown Cincinnati. ASSOCIATED PRESS

Crowds watch a past Riverfest fireworks from a park overlooking downtown Cincinnati. ASSOCIATED PRESS
What to Know
By Staff reports
July 31, 2020
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One of Southwest Ohio’s biggest Labor Day weekend celebrations and fireworks display has been canceled.

Riverfest 2020 has been canceled due to ongoing concerns around the spread of coronavirus, Cincinnati’s Mayor John Cranley announced Friday during a news conference, our media partners at WCPO reported.

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Fireworks explode over the Ohio River during the annual Riverfest activities in Cincinnati. ASSOCIATED PRESS

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“It’s inconceivable that we would feel comfortable to have that kind of a large gathering on the river a month from now,” Cranley said. “We hope it can come back next year, but it’s certainly something we’re not going to be ready for this year.”

The event is held the Sunday of Labor Day weekend along the Ohio River banks on the Cincinnati and Kentucky sides and draws an average of 250,000 people.

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Kentucky towns along the river banks including Newport, Covington and Bellevue had previously withdrawn their participation in the event.

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Staff reports