The City of Mississauga says it is cancelling New Year’s Eve celebrations due to a recent surge in COVID-19 cases from the highly transmissible Omicron variant.
City officials said organized events at Celebration Square, including fireworks, will not go ahead this year.
“This was a really tough decision to make but absolutely necessary to keep our residents safe,” said Jodi Robillos, commissioner, community services.
“When we made the decision to host New Year’s Eve, the situation with COVID-19 was much more stable,” Robillos continued. “Typically, New Year’s Eve events at Celebration Square have drawn very large crowds. With the current situation of COVID-19 cases, now is not the time to be gathering in massive groups.”
Officials said the skating rink at Celebration Square will be open until 11 p.m. with food trucks on site.
The city is encouraging anyone in the square after 11 p.m. to head home and watch a virtual countdown to ring in the new year safely.
Global News reached out to the City of Toronto to see if it would follow suit. Toronto city staff said it would release an update on the status of New Year’s Eve celebrations on Wednesday.