NEW YORK (1010 WINS) -- New York City’s St. Patrick’s Day Parade returned to Fifth Avenue on Thursday after the annual bash was canceled for two years because of COVID-19.
In another sign that New York City is emerging from the pandemic, the world’s oldest and largest St. Pat’s parade kicked off at 11 a.m.
The 35-block-long parade route begins at E. 44th Street and ends at E. 79th Street, going past Central Park and the iconic St. Patrick’s Cathedral, where a Mass was held earlier in the morning.
Bishop Robert Brennan, of the Diocese of Brooklyn, stepped in for Cardinal Timothy Dolan, who is in St. Louis with his family mourning the loss of his mother, Shirley Jean Radcliffe Dolan, who died Saturday.
There will be a moment of silence at 12 p.m. to remember and honor the victims and first responders of the pandemic. There will also be a delegation of Ukrainian marchers bringing attention to the Russian war in their homeland.
This year’s grand marshal is James T. Callahan, the general president of the International Union of Operating Engineers, a union that represents over 400,000 men and women in the U.S. and Canada.
Related
As they have done every year since 1851, the New York National Guard's Fighting 69th led the parade down Fifth Avenue. The unit has a number of St. Patrick's Day traditions, including marching in the parade with a pair of Irish Wolfhounds — the official mascot of the 69th Infantry — and starting the day off with a toast of Irish whiskey.
An estimated 150,000 people are expected to attend the parade. The anticipated turnout isn’t as big as years past, but a big step forward.
Bernie Reilly, who owns the famous Connolly’s Pub, is hoping for a boost in business from the parade.
“It’s very important for the Irish, for everybody, and very important for me, Maybe I can make a few dollars,” Reilly said.
Unfortunately, green-clad revelers weren't greeted by great parade weather. The forecast called for rain and drizzle in the morning and a chilly, damp and rainy afternoon, with a high of only 53. It warms up again Friday, when temps will top 70.
New York’s full-scale parade, first held in 1762, was canceled in 2020 and again in 2021 because of the pandemic. To keep the tradition going during those years, organizers quietly held small parades, right around sunrise, when the streets were empty. Bagpipes accompanied a tiny contingent of officials and a smattering of people drawn by the music.
On Wednesday, Mayor Eric Adams raised the flag of Ireland at Bowling Green Park, not far from Ellis Island, to honor the city’s Irish history.
“When this flag raises, our city is going to raise with it as we recover from COVID, never to be daunted,” the mayor said. “The luck of the Irish, the luck of prosperity, the luck of hope—all of that shines on us all.”
The parade is being held as the city emerges from a discouraging bout with the highly contagious omicron variant, which killed more than 4,000 people in the five boroughs in January and February.
New infections and hospitalizations have declined since the surge, prompting city officials to green-light the procession.
Currently, you don't need to show proof of vaccination to dine indoors at a restaurant in New York, but huge numbers of people still wear masks in public and avoid big crowds. Office towers remain partially empty, as many businesses still haven't called employees back to their cubicles. Tourists, once thick enough to obstruct Manhattan sidewalks, are still not back in their usual numbers.
“If you walk around the city, it's still very different,” said Sean Lane, the parade organizer and a financial adviser at a major Wall Street firm. “It’s a very different vibe when you walk in Manhattan versus what it would have been two years ago, because the people aren’t fully back yet.”
Allowing the parade to proceed, he said, could provide a surge of confidence among New Yorkers to return to public life.
“Psychologically, it means a lot,” he said. “New York really needs this."
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
LISTEN on the Audacy App
Sign Up and Follow Audacy
Facebook | Twitter | Instagram