Constitution Avenue usually comes alive with springtime fun at the annual National Cherry Blossom Festival event. But not this year.

The National Cherry Blossom Festival announced today that it will cancel the 2020 National Cherry Blossom Festival Parade on April 4.

According to a press release,

“We extend our sincere appreciation to the fourteen (14) high school marching bands from all over the country as they prepared for the parade over the past year as well as our Petalpalooza® participants, performers and sponsors who were primed to celebrate with us,” said Diana Mayhew, President and CEO of the National Cherry Blossom Festival. “Our priority continues to be the health and safety of our staff, guests and all Festival supporters and as such we are following the recommendations of national and global health experts.”

The parade is the latest in the long list of Cherry Blossom Festival events that have been canceled. Earlier in the week, it seemed as though maybe the parade (and the now-canceled Petalpalooza) were safe from cancellation, given their April dates. Only March events were canceled at first. 

Unfortunately, however, that's not the case. Click here for a breakdown of all the National Cherry Blossom Festival events and their current statuses.

This is a Public Service Announcement, however, that just because festivals and events are canceled, it doesn't mean spring itself is canceled. The cherry blossoms will still bloom in all their glory, with peak dates of March 21–24.