The crowds were smaller than in previous years, but Pittsburgh’s St. Patrick’s Day celebrations lived on Saturday.
Earlier this week, the annual St. Patrick’s Day Parade was canceled as a precautionary measure to prevent the potential spread of the coronavirus. As health experts recommend social distancing, Pittsburgh officials asked bar owners to limit their occupancy.
Mayor Bill Peduto also declared a state of emergency for the city Friday. Starting Monday, Pittsburgh will prohibit gatherings of more than 250 people.
Some of the popular establishments took special precautions in light of the pandemic. At Mullaney’s Harp & Fiddle Irish Pub in the Strip District, a capacity for the building was instituted — allowing only 140 people inside and 340 outside.
The pub is typically a go-to destination after the parade. Owner and manager David Regan wasn’t expecting the same crowds as previous years.
“We can only allow so many people in,” he said.
Regan said employees were disinfecting surfaces frequently and making hand sanitizer available for customers.
Many revelers were still excited to celebrate.
“I think people are going to be like, ‘Oh no, we’re going to be stuck inside for two weeks, so let’s all go drink today,’ ” said Virginia Mannion of Stanton Heights, who passed by the pub Saturday afternoon.
Mannion didn’t plan to participate in any of the day’s festivities. She had just finished running 19 miles in preparation for the Pittsburgh Marathon. She now expects that to be canceled.
Saturday was the first St. Patrick’s Day celebration spent at Harp & Fiddle for Mike Cook of Saxonburg. Cook said he didn’t see why people couldn’t enjoy the holiday as long as they washed their hands.
“If you go to Walmart or Sam’s Club or anything like that, it’s absolutely packed,” Cook said. “And people don’t think anything about that, but they think it’s wrong to do something like this.”
Pittsburgh’s South Side neighborhood was more crowded than the Strip. Shannon Crooks of Bellevue said the streets were much less packed than they’ve been in previous years. The momentum picked up around 2 p.m., though — Crooks said the lack of parade just delayed the inevitable.
Another look at the South Side. A lot of told me the St. Patrick’s Day crowd this year is much more “subdued” than usual. #Pittsburgh @TribLIVE pic.twitter.com/ke8rNNPqTF
— Teghan Simonton (@teghan_simonton) March 14, 2020
Heinz Langhorst, who was working security for The Vault Taproom, said preventing the spread of coronavirus is as simple as personal hygiene — there is no need for panic, he said.
“It’s an easy thing,” Langhorst said. “It’s gotten a little over-hyped.”
Crooks said she isn’t worried about the virus.
“I’ll live my life, I’ll do my thing and then address it if I have to,” she said.
