Jefferson Parish cancels Mardi Gras parades. Zulu and Rex alter plans

With strong winds in the forecast on Tuesday, Mardi Gras parades in Jefferson Parish have been canceled, and two parades in New Orleans have adjusted their plans, WDSU and Fox 8 reported.

The National Weather Service in Slidell predicts winds of up to 60 mph starting Tuesday morning. Thunderstorms with a risk of hail and tornadoes are expected sometime after noon. Forecasters worry this could lead to downed trees and power outages, and destabilize floats, posing a risk to krewes and paradegoers.

The New Orleans Police Department said no tents or tarps will be allowed on parade routes after Monday night. They were monitoring weather conditions and considered canceling parades for the Zulu Social Aid and Pleasure Club and the Krewe of Rex, but the parades were still set to roll on Tuesday.

As of this writing, Zulu plans to hold its parade at 6:30 a.m., over an hour earlier than scheduled, Fox 8 reported. They will take a slightly different route, turning onto Poydras Street instead of Canal.

There will be no dancing troupes or bands, however, the krewe plans to include HBCU bands that have already traveled into town. The krewe called off the truck parade that was scheduled to take place after the parade, according to WDSU.

The Krewe of Rex parade will hold its parade at 9:30 a.m. Fox 8 reports all parades must be off the streets by noon.

Jefferson Parish canceled the Krewe of Argus and Elks Krewe of Jeffersonians parades that were set to roll on Tuesday. At a press conference Monday, Parish President Cynthia Lee Sheng said it was a difficult decision, “but our top priority is ensuring the well-being of everyone in our community.” Her administration is working with the krewes to reschedule their parades.

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For up-to-date forecasts, you can visit the NWS New Orleans’ new "Mardi Gras Decision Support Page.” There, you can find a 7-day forecast for cities in southeast Louisiana and the Mississippi Gulf Coast, with hour-by-hour weather predictions on things like the temperature, wind, cloud coverage and rain chances. The forecast is color-coded green when no impacts are expected, yellow for possible limited impacts, orange for possible moderate impacts and red if there could be significant impacts.