Lollapalooza requires a vaccination card or detrimental take a look at to enter the competition: NPR

David Shaw of The Revivalists to perform at Lollapalooza 2019. Amy Harris / Amy Harris / Invision / AP

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Amy Harris / Amy Harris / Invision / AP

David Shaw of The Revivalists to perform at Lollapalooza 2019.

Amy Harris / Amy Harris / Invision / AP

CHICAGO – The hordes of people expected to attend the Lollapalooza music festival in Chicago’s Grant Park this week will need to provide evidence that they have been vaccinated for COVID-19 or tested negative for the disease within the past three days.

The four-day festival begins on Thursday and is expected to be fully occupied again with around 100,000 visitors a day. After going missing last summer due to the coronavirus threat, it will be by far the largest gathering in Chicago since the pandemic began, and one of the country’s.

This year’s festival will look very different than in the past. To gain entry, participants must present their vaccination card or a hard copy of a negative COVID-19 test no older than 72 hours. That means anyone who has a four-day pass and is not vaccinated will need to get tested twice. In addition, anyone who is not vaccinated must wear a mask.

Public health officials and others have raised concerns that such a large gathering, even outdoors, could turn into a super-spread event. Officials in the Netherlands were shocked after a much smaller music festival attended by 20,000 people over two days earlier this month resulted in nearly 1,000 cases of COVID-19, CNBC reported. This festival had similar security measures as that of Lollapalooza.

Despite the recent surge in cases caused by the highly contagious Delta variant, Dr. Allison Arwady, the commissioner for the Chicago Department of Health, said this week that she is comfortable that Lollapalooza will continue as planned due to the precautions organizers are taking. say they have gone “above and beyond”. In addition to the entry requirements, the organizers examined the ventilation of all interior rooms, made sure that the backstage staff were vaccinated, provided masks and tested ticket takers.

“I wouldn’t feel comfortable moving Lollapalooza without COVID protocols,” said Arwady. “I also don’t think I would feel comfortable if this were an indoor event. And honestly, I don’t think I would be comfortable if we were in Louisiana, where the falls look like they are they would look like. “

Although the number of daily new cases in Chicago rose from 104 a week ago to 176 on Wednesday, the city has not had the increase in recent weeks that many other parts of the country have seen in recent weeks and its daily average number of cases Deaths and hospital stays have decreased slightly.

“We take COVID seriously,” said Arwady.

At the same time, “If you have that many people who are almost certain to get through, there will almost certainly be some cases. But I’m confident that the combination of what we know about limiting your risk outdoors will do that Combination with vaccination and / or tests and ideally mostly vaccinations, which we expect, as well as all other mitigation factors. “

Lollapalooza officials did not immediately respond to a request for more information about the screening process, but the festival website states that each entrance will be manned to search all bags the attendees are carrying and ensure no one is in has to carry anything but small purses, tote bags and drawstring bags.