Coachella & Stagecoach 2020 Festivals Canceled Due To Coronavirus

Officials of Riverside County California announced the cancellations of the 2020 Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival and Stagecoach Country Music Festival. The officials cited concerns stemming from the coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic for forcing the cancellations.

Both Coachella and Stagecoach are held annually at Empire Polo Grounds in Indio, California, which is within Riverside County. Organizers Goldenvoice previously responded to the COVID-19 outbreak by postponing the two April events to October.

As the Los Angeles Times reports, the cancellation order signed yesterday by Riverside County public health officer Dr. Cameron Kaiser and the county’s attorney Gregory P. Priamos was “based on concerns of a fall resurgence of COVID-19 both within the County of Riverside and worldwide, scientific evidence regarding the most effective approach to slow transmission of communicable diseases generally and COVID-19 specifically, and best practices as currently known and available to protect the public from the risk of spread of or exposure to COVID-19.”

Coachella debuted in 1999 and has been held annually since 2001. Stagecoach has been held each year at Empire Polo Grounds since its 2007 debut.