Coronavirus concerns postponed Fiesta event in the Philippines

As of Wednesday morning, none of the Fiesta events scheduled to take place in San Antonio next month have been canceled.

But at least one Fiesta elsewhere did not go forward as planned.

UNKNWN.Fiesta, a festival in the Philippines, was postponed from its original February date to 2021.

The Manila event — “a celebration of Filipino heritage and culture through music, art, food and design” — was supposed to kick off on Feb. 22. Instead, organizers decided on Feb. 11 to postpone the festival until the first quarter of next year.

READ MORE: There’s a place named San Antonio in the Philippines where residents also celebrate fiesta

The decision was made with “heavy hearts,” organizers wrote in a statement, noting that “with guests coming from different parts of the globe, over a thousand ticket holders and hundreds of crew, we have been left with the only option of postponing UNKNWN.Fiesta.⁣⁣”

Fans who purchased tickets had the option to request refunds from Feb. 12 until March 12 or keep their tickets for the next Fiesta.

UNKNWN.Fiesta’s lineup included English band Hot Chip, who have two upcoming Texas dates, and the Hercules & Love Affair group.

A newspaper in the Philippines notes that there are about one hundred different fiestas celebrated in the country each year — including one in a place called San Antonio located more than 8,000 miles from the Alamo City.

As for the upcoming Fiesta here in Texas, the event’s executive director Amy Shaw told the Express-News on Tuesday that organizers will “do whatever the city and public health officials tell us to do.”

“Obviously, the health and well-being of our attendees is our No. 1 concern,” Shaw said. “But absent a single case of community transmitted disease, it’s too early to make a decision to cancel.”

Mark Dunphy is a breaking news reporter and general assignment writer. Read him on our breaking news site, MySA.com, and on our subscriber site, ExpressNews.com | [email protected] | @m_b_dunphy

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