Estimated 200,000 take in St. Paddy’s Day parade
St. Paddy’s Day lineup Irish dancers perform on a flatbed truck during yesterday’s St. Patrick’s Day parade on Howe Street. Two thousand people took part in the fourth annual parade, which featured dancers, pipe bands and clowns.
Thousands of people lined Howe and Granville Streets yesterday to take in the pipe bands and dancers of the city’s fourth annual St. Patrick’s Day parade.
“We were delighted with the weather,” said Rita Albano, executive producer of CelticFest. “It certainly made up for the very rainy day we had (Saturday).”
More than 2,000 people marched in yesterday’s parade.
Participants included Irish and Highland dancers, pipe and marching bands, horses, clowns, Hurley players, Gaelic footballers and even roller derby enthusiasts.
The crowd has doubled in size every year since its inception in 2004. Albano estimated that there were 200,000 spectators yesterday.
“It was really good,” said Erin Sirohi, who watched the parade with her two-year-old son Theodore. She said he particularly liked the bands and the horses.
Shane Kutzy, a member of the 78th Fraser Highlanders ceremonial unit, said the parade route was perfect, “not too long, not too short.”
The festival, which began Wednesday, featured 60 performances, including headliners Ashley MacIsaac and Spirit of the West.
“We’ve probably had the best year we’ve ever had,” Albano said.
“The festival itself as a whole has raised the bar with regards to the quality of our performers.”
