An announcement was made at noon Friday that the 84th International Rice Festival has been placed “on hold.”
“The International Rice Festival Board of Directors has been monitoring the COVID-19 situation and its effects on our festival very closely,” the statement from Joshua Spell, general chairman, read.
“As you all know, the planning of our festival includes coordinating numerous vendors, scheduling entertainment, relying on community sponsors and, of course, hosting large crowds made up of both locals and guests from various cities and states,” he stated.
Spell goes on to say the the focus of the board is the safety and wellbeing of all the volunteers and visitors “and our ability to produce an event to the standards that our festival-goers are accustomed to and deserve.”
The board agreed that all positions currently held , including the executive board, board of directors, queen and presidential party, will remain in place until the 84th International Rice Festival is held, “regardless of date.”
