Boo! Thousands crowd New Orleans streets for 1st parade

NEW ORLEANS — The high school bands played, the costumed marching groups danced and float riders threw Moon Pies and beads to the thousands of people who turned out Saturday for New Orleans’ first big parade since the onslaught of the coronavirus pandemic put the brakes on the city’s signature brand of frivolity. “I have been waiting for this since April of 2020.” After over a year where the coronavirus largely put an end to parades, the streets were lined with thousands of residents and tourists who came to watch the Krewe of Boo parade — the first float parade since Mardi Gras of 2020. If the city can pull off the Halloween-themed Krewe of Boo parade safely, without a resulting uptick in COVID-19 infections, it will bolster Mayor LaToya Cantrell’s tentative plans toward bringing back the lavish Mardi Gras processions that fill city streets during the annual pre-Lenten celebration. “This is a step towards the return of Mardi Gras next spring,” Cantrell said in a Twitter post after announcing in September that the Krewe of Boo parade could proceed.