Gulfport, New Orleans krewes holding Coast Mardi Gras balls despite COVID-19 pandemic
Mardi Gras parades are canceled in New Orleans and across the Mississippi Coast because of the coronavirus pandemic, but at least two krewes decided to go ahead and have their balls in Biloxi.
New Orleans’ Mystic Krewe of Nyx held a ball Saturday for about 50 people at IP Casino Resort in Biloxi, WDSU reported.
New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell’s office responded with a statement Monday, calling for the people who attended to quarantine.
“Large gatherings where people are in close contact and unmasked have been shown repeatedly to lead to outbreaks of the virus that cause hospitalizations and deaths,” the statement said.
“This kind of irresponsible behavior and callous disregard for the work our people have done to stop the spread is unacceptable. That it happened elsewhere is irrelevant, since it involves New Orleans residents and a local Carnival organization,” the statement continued.
“We urge everyone who attended the event to quarantine for at least 10 days and consider getting tested, so as not to jeopardize the city’s recent improvement in metrics after a devastating holiday surge,” Cantrell said.
Vincent Creel, Biloxi public affairs manager, said he was told there were 45 people in a room with a capacity of 500 for last weekend’s ball. There was no dancing or live music, and tables for 10 were spread out and limited to six per table.
Biloxi has been consistent in its message to prevent the spread of COVID-19, Creel said.
“We tell people to mask up. We tell them to social distance, and we tell them to avoid social gatherings,” he said. “We released guidelines at the outset. We pass along the latest updates, and we ask people to follow protocols. We will continue to remind people that we remain in a pandemic.”
Gemini’s ball will go on
Krewe of Gemini is holding its annual ball on Jan. 30 at the Biloxi Civic Center. It’s the only ball scheduled at a city venue, said Bill Raymond, who is historical administrator for Biloxi and oversees the rental program.
The Gulfport krewe holds its ball in Biloxi, said member Shellie Moses, because there isn’t a space large enough to accommodate it in Gulfport. The festivities have been at the civic center for the last 10 years, she said, and before that at the Coast Coliseum.
Moses said she is organizing the ball with precautions to make sure members and invited guests can still participate in Mardi Gras. The krewe surveyed the members — who range in age from 20s to pushing 90 — to see if they should have the event this year.
Some members with underlying health conditions won’t be attending, she said.
“We think this needs to continue,” she said they told her. “We’re just not going to be participating this year.”
Under Gov. Tate Reeve’s Executive Order 1535, reception halls and conference centers are allowed to operate at up to 50% of the maximum seating capacity with strict social distancing.
The Biloxi Civic Center that normally accommodates more than 1,000 people now can host a maximum of 500.
“It’s a huge room,” Moses said. Instead of the 500 people allowed, she set the maximum at 300, including the servers and a band out of Nashville.
The executive order allows for up to 10 people at a table, and she said the tables will be set for six. The requirement is for 6 feet of separation between tables, and she said they will be at least 10 feet apart.
“Everything has exceeded the mandates that have been put in place,” she said.
The older members, many of whom she said have already had their first dose of coronavirus vaccine, will be seated away from younger people who are out in the community every day. Hand sanitizer will be available at every table and throughout the civic center.
Mardi Gras music moves outdoors
Gulfport Mayor Billy Hewes announced in early January that “the City of Gulfport will not host any Mardi Gras events this year.”
“Many revelers start preparing for the balls, parades and revelry in the fall,” Hewes said in the statement Jan. 4. “Unfortunately, the circumstances facing us this year have caused us to re-evaluate our celebrations. Due to the presence of COVID-19 in our community, it isn’t prudent for us to host festivities that would draw large crowds. “
Six months ago, people were saying they didn’t know anyone who had tested positive for the coronavirus, he said. Now, Hewes said he doesn’t know of anyone who hasn’t had a friend or relative test positive or die from COVID-19.
“We are not close to being out of the woods,” Hewes said Tuesday, when the state reported 1,452 new cases and 75 deaths in Mississippi.
Music, though, will continue to be a part of Mardi Gras 2021.
“The parades may be canceled, the krewe balls and tableaus may be postponed, but that doesn’t mean we can’t help bring some Mardi Gras spirit to you,” the popular Coast band Blackwater Brass posted on Facebook.
The band usually plays at Mardi Gras events in New Orleans and Mobile, said trombone player Mondo Belmonte, but this year they are staying home on the Coast.
They will play at second line-themed performances on Fat Tuesday, starting in Ocean Springs and making stops every 90 minutes at bars and restaurants in Biloxi, Gulfport, Pass Christian and Bay St Louis. A two-hour stage show is planned that evening in Gulfport.
All events will be outside, and Belmonte said, “We’re going to adhere to every regulation and mandate in place.” Those who go should wear masks and maintain social distancing, he said.
The idea is to bring “a little joy, a little Mardi Gras,” he said.
For months, there was no music on the Coast, he said, but this event will remind people where South Mississippi was before the pandemic and what the Coast will get back to again.
“We’ve had to find some creative ways to keep everything rolling,” he said.
Even outdoors, restaurants must maintain 75% of the normal occupancy under the current regulations.
Hewes said the city does want businesses to stay open, but also wants business owners to consider the safety of workers and customers.
Customers who are worried about the safety of an event shouldn’t attend, he said.
Knowing the risks of group events
Moses said she is aware of what happened after the Christmas ball at the Biloxi Yacht Club.
Several people who attended the event tested positive for the coronavirus and one person died, although it’s not confirmed if that person’s case came from the event or elsewhere.
Large, indoor gatherings are an opportunity for a superspreader event, especially if people are removing their masks to eat or drink, scientific experts and the CDC have said.
Anyone can catch or transmit COVID-19 through airborne droplets that are too small to see — especially if people are within 6 feet of each other.
A Maine wedding reception with 55 people led to 117 new cases and seven deaths. At an Arkansas church over three days, a pastor and his wife passed the virus to 35 people, and three died. Those new cases spread to 26 other people, and at least one died.
“We have had members that have had COVID,” Moses said, but none who have died.
“It’s all going to be on a much smaller scale than we usually do,” she said.
While decorative masques that cover the top half of the face are standard at Mardi Gras balls, this year protective masks that cover the mouth and nose are required. As usual, there will be a king and queen with costumes, she said, but no young pages.
After Hurricane Katrina, the krewe held the ball with a king and queen, she said. Like that year, “Everybody is craving something to do to have a little bit of our normal lives back,” Moses said.
Wait until Mardi Gras 2022
Gulf Coast Carnival Association balls and parades are the largest on the Coast. Chairman Kenny Holloway said along with canceling the parades, the group decided to call off the Carnival balls.
“We just felt with the numbers the way they’re trending, it was not the smart thing to do,” he said.
Holding the ball during COVID-19 would set the group up for a lot of public criticism, he said, “especially with what happened at the Biloxi Yacht Club.”
Instead, the royalty, whose members spend considerable money on costumes and preparations, will be introduced next year, he said.
This story was originally published January 27, 2021 at 5:50 AM.
