This announcement follows several major organizations and companies deciding to not attend the festival.
AUSTIN, Texas — For the first time in its 33-year history, South by Southwest has been canceled as the City of Austin declares a local emergency due to concerns about the coronavirus spreading.
In an announcement on Friday by Mayor Steve Adler, Judge Sarah Eckhardt, Dr. Mark Escott of the Interim Health Authority and Austin Public Health Director Stephanie Hayden, the City of Austin declared a local emergency, canceling the Spring Festival event as the COVID-19 virus causes worldwide concern.
Dr. Escott said the decision was made after weighing options to mitigate the risk of the disease. He said factors such as the close proximity of participants and attendance of international guests led officials to cancel the event entirely.
This announcement follows several major organizations and companies deciding to not attend the festival, along with a Change.org petition signed by tens of thousands of people calling for the festival to be canceled.
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Those who had pulled out of the convention before Friday's announcement include the following companies and organizations:
Individual artists and participants had also pulled out of the event.
The creators of the petition said they were “concerned about the hundreds of thousands of people who will be traveling to Austin, Texas, in March for the SXSW festival.”
On March 3, Austin-based company Indeed asked its employees to work from home as concerns surrounding the coronavirus continue to grow.
More than 100,000 people worldwide have been diagnosed with coronavirus, with at least 250 cases in the U.S. and 15 deaths, according to the CDC. At least one person is being tested for the coronavirus in Travis County, but Austin health officials said the risk to the public is growing.
The cancellation is a major decision from the City, which had said there was no evidence closing SXSW would make the community safer. Last year's event brought an estimated $355 million to Austin, the single most profitable event for the City of Austin's hospitality industry.
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