Coronavirus Cancellations and Postponements: Everything That’s Been Delayed Due to COVID-19

As of Friday, growing concerns about coronavirus has officially led to a declaration of a national emergency by President Donald Trump, just two days after the World Health Organization declared the outbreak to be an official pandemic. Along with these declarations, there have been a number of event cancellations, postponements, causing some serious disruptions to day-to-day life.

As several are pulling their events off the calendar, many with hopes of eventually rescheduling, individual artists and performers are also taking an abundance of precautions. Bands like Rage Against the Machine and Pearl Jam are putting off their March tour dates, as is comedian Adam Sandler.

While these mounting instances may be inconvenient, they many believe they may be necessary. This includes infectious disease researcher Dr. Ravina Kullar, who told Entertainment Tonight in March that “I think that’s a good idea. Until we get a handle and grasp on this virus, I think we need to take precautionary measures.”

With that in mind, here’s a rundown of everything that’s been postponed or delayed due to coronavirus.

Coachella

The annual event, which draws roughly a quarter-million attendees, was slated to happen over two weekends in April in Indio, California but is now reportedly being postponed until October out of fears of the disease. The news was first announced on March 10. 

Stagecoach Festival

The same day as Coachella’s cancellation came word that the country music-centric Stagecoach Festival would postpone its dates in April until October. Roughly 75,000 people attend yearly, making it the highest-grossing country festival operating.

iHeartCountry Festival

Originally scheduled for May 2, the iHeartCountry Festival will no longer take in Austin, Texas as scheduled. A statement on the Frank Erwin Center website, where the event is held, said that “no decision has been made at this point on when events will resume.”

They added that “an announcement will be made once that is determined. Ticket holders will be contacted directly about any postponed events.”

The NCIS franchise

Production on all three NCIS programs, NCIS, NCIS: Los Angeles and NCIS: New Orleans have all postponed production for the time being, citing coronavirus fears. Reports indicate the trio of productions will take at least a two-week break before reassessing when they’d start up again. 

Grey’s Anatomy

Similarly, ABC’s long-running medical drama Grey’s Anatomy will also pause production. The news was announced in a memo to the show’s cast and crew. 

“Out of an abundance of caution, production is postponed on Grey’s Anatomy effective immediately,” read the memo. “We are going home now for at least two weeks and waiting to see how the coronavirus situation evolves.”

The Boston Marathon

One of the biggest footraces in the world, the Boston Marathon, was postponed by Mayor Marty Walsh. Originally scheduled for April 20, the race has been pushed back to Sept. 14. The city decided to protect the health of the 31,000 registered runners and the estimated 1 million spectators who normally attend the race.

iPhone 12

While this isn’t certain just yet, coronavirus anxiety may end up delaying the release of the new iPhone, which normally comes out in the fall, and has become an event in itself. Sources told Digitimes that Apple is preparing for the possibility that its annual iPhone reveal may have to be pushed back a month or two, at least. 

SXSW

The annual film, music and tech conference, which is held every March in Austin, Texas, was canceled on Friday, March 6 by Mayor Steve Adler. The event is attended by roughly 400,000 people and brings in hundreds of millions of dollars to the local economy. 

New York City’s St. Patrick’s Day Parade

On Wednesday, New York City officially canceled its annual St. Patrick’s Day parade, marking the first time the parade won’t be held since 1762, interrupting 258 years of tradition. The decision was reportedly made by Parade Chairman Sean Lane and New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo. 

NBA

On Wednesday, the NBA abruptly suspended “until further notice.” The decision came after a Utah Jazz player tested positive for COVID-19 ahead of Utah’s game against the Oklahoma City Thunder, which was immediately canceled. 

NCAA March Madness

The NCAA league president Mark Emmert announced the cancellation of the Division I men’s and women’s basketball tournament on Thursday. It was also announced the NCAA has canceled the remaining winter and spring NCAA championships, all of which was done to take precautionary reasons regarding coronavirus.