NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – Mardi Gras 2025 will go on in New Orleans and the surrounding areas but with major adjustments due to the threat of severe weather.
The Krewe of Zulu will roll on Fat Tuesday (March 4) at 6:30 a.m. Rex says it will follow at 9:30 a.m., but both parades will disband earlier on shortened routes, New Orleans Police Department Supt. Anne Kirkpatrick said. Marching krewes and truck floats will not be permitted. All parades will be required to clear off the streets by 11:30 a.m.
“Parading is over at 11:30,” Kirkpatrick said. “Have a great time, but at 11:30, you’re out of here.”
However, Kirkpatrick said her decision to let parades roll Tuesday was contingent upon the National Weather Service advisory remaining as a High Wind Watch, rather than a more dangerous High Wind Warning. She spoke at a press conference at 3:40 p.m., apparently not realizing that the NWS had already designated around 1 p.m. the more severe High Wind Warning, which is in place Tuesday from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.
That new information caused city officials to huddle again, with the fate of parades still unclear. New Orleans’ police chief said she was reserving the right to reverse parade authorization if conditions or forecasts further deteriorated early Tuesday morning.
Under the changes initially announced, Zulu will not roll through the historic Treme neighborhood. The krewe will disband at Poydras Street.
Rex will not pass Gallier Hall, where traditionally Rex toasts the mayor of New Orleans. Rex will instead turn down Jackson Avenue and disband.
“If winds are higher than I expected, then I will not have a parade,” Kirkpatrick warned. “I know that would make people mad, but I’m accustomed to having people mad. … We are a city of Carnival, and you don’t just cancel that easily. But public safety will always be No. 1.”
If the parades roll under high wind conditions, Kirkpatrick urged revelers to “pee before you come.” Portable toilets along the routes will be picked up Monday due to time constraints on Tuesday. She also asked paradegoers not to bring umbrellas or tents.
Truck parades will be rescheduled for Sunday, but details on times and routes were not immediately provided by police or city officials.
Severe weather outlook(WVUE)
Rex said in an email shortly before 5 p.m. that its parade will start at 9:30 a.m. at the intersection of Napoleon and South Claiborne Avenues. The parade will follow its traditional route until it reaches Jackson Avenue, where it will turn left at the corner of Jackson and St. Charles avenues. Rex will continue on Jackson until reaching South Claiborne, where it will disband.
Zulu said in an email just before 6 p.m. that it’s parade would start Tuesday at 6:30 a.m. at Jackson Avenue and South Claiborne Avenue. It will proceed down Jackson to St. Charles Avenue, turn left and go down St. Charles to Poydras Street, then turn sharply left onto Poydras before disbanding at Loyola Avenue.
Jefferson Parish officials canceled all of their Mardi Gras Day parades due to forecasted winds of 40 to 60 mph and an increased risk of severe storms later in the day.
“This is disappointing, but our top priority is ensuring the well-being of everyone in our community,” Parish President Cynthia Lee-Sheng said in a press conference.
+ First Alert: High winds and a severe weather threat on Mardi Gras Day
The first half of the Mardi Gras forecast is quiet, but near lunchtime, conditions deteriorate. Winds are forecast to begin gusting consistently over 40 mph and continue through the afternoon.
Between 4 and 10 p.m., severe storms will enter the area from the west as a storm system blows through.
The severe weather risk will come from the possibility of tornadoes, damaging winds and heavy rains. A separate wind threat will come ahead of this storm line and we’re under a High Wind Watch for that secondary threat.
The Carnival in Covington parade has been moved up to 9:15 a.m. The Krewe of Bogue Falaya will roll at 10 a.m.
The Krewe of Folsom parade has been canceled.
In Lafourche Parish, the Krewe of Chana and Shaka will begin at 8 a.m. in Thibodaux. The Krewe of Gheens will roll at 10:30 a.m. and the Krewe of Neptune will start at 11 a.m. in Golden Meadow.
In Terrebonne Parish, only floats will roll in the Krewe of Houmas parade, which is now starting at 11 a.m. The Krewe of Kajuns will now roll on Monday night following Cleopatra at 6 p.m.
As officials finalized Mardi Gras plans, Lundi Gras celebrations carried on.
Argus and Zulu royalty greeted each other in Kenner’s Rivertown.
Thousands gathered along the New Orleans Riverfront for the Zulu Lundi Gras Festival at Woldenberg Park.
King Zulu Rodney Paul Mason and Queen Kristen Bonds Mason will arrive via Coast Guard cutter.
French Quarter crowds are also growing, with locals and tourists alike soaking in the Mardi Gras experience rain or shine.
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