NEW ORLEANS — WWL meteorologists say there could be spotty rain on Saturday and the possibility of heavy rain on Sunday. Here is how it will affect some of the biggest events of the year.
Saturday, March 16
Irish Channel St. Patrick’s Day Parade (1 p.m.)
The Irish Channel parade draws around 100,000 people and hundreds of riders and marchers per year.
The parade will roll rain or shine. The only weather that would stop it, Irish Channel St. Patrick’s Club Vice President Robbie Burke said, is lightning. “There is no contingency day,” he said. “It would be up to the police.”
The forecast should cooperate for the Irish Channel Block Party on the preceding Thursday at Annunciation Square. All proceeds to go St. Michael Special School.
Italian American St. Joseph’s Day Parade (6 p.m.)
Organizer Peter Gilberti says a sprinkle will not affect the parade, which starts at the Convention Center and makes a loop around the French Quarter. Heavier rain could be a problem, though that is unlikely Saturday.
Sunday, March 17
Uptown Super Sunday (festival begins at A.L. Davis Park at noon, procession begins at 2 p.m.)
This is the first of three Super Sundays. The gatherings are some of the most important days for the city’s Mardi Gras Indian Tribes, who come from around the city to sing, dance, chant, and show off their hand-beaded suits.
Tyrone Casby, Secretary and Treasurer of the Mardi Gras Indian Council and Big Chief of the West Bank’s Mohawk Hunters, said festival-goers may not see many Indians out on Super Sunday if it rains because the suits generally cannot get wet. If that happens, the procession will be postponed to the following Sunday.
The festival will still happen, though, unless there is a deluge. “The plan is to come out and enjoy,” said Casby.
Metairie Road St. Patrick’s Day Parade (noon)
The parade begins at 41st Street and Severn. WWL Louisiana has not been able to confirm what will happen if the parade is rained out.
Downtown Irish Club Parade (6 p.m.)
Club President Charles Combs said it “has never cancelled a parade for weather since our formation in 1976.” The parade will march, no matter the rain, unless it encounters “serious weather events,” in which case it will consult with the city to find a solution.
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