St. Patrick’s Day parades turn pandemic blues Irish green

St. Patrick’s Day parades turn pandemic blues Irish green

FILE - This file photo from Saturday March 16, 2019, shows Sharon Keely, left, of Dublin, viewing the St. Patrick's Day Parade along Fifth Avenue in New York. A largely virtual St. Patrick's Day is planned for New York City on Wednesday, March 17, 2021, one year after the annual parade celebrating Irish heritage became one of the city's first coronavirus casualties. (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer, File)

NEW YORK (AP) — St. Patrick’s Day celebrations across the country are back after a two-year hiatus. That includes New York City’s parade Thursday, the nation’s largest and oldest. It’s a sign of growing hope that the worst of the coronavirus pandemic may be over. In 2020, these parades were among the first major events cancelled as the virus hit the United States. New York’s parade coincides this year with the city’s reopening. Major mask and vaccination rules have recently been lifted. Elsewhere, Chicago dyed its river green after doing so without much fanfare last year. Communities in Boston, Florida, and Savannah, Georgia, are also bringing their parades back.

Photo: FILE – This file photo from Saturday March 16, 2019, shows Sharon Keely, left, of Dublin, viewing the St. Patrick’s Day Parade along Fifth Avenue in New York. (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer, File)