The annual Bergen County St. Patrickʼs Day Parade, scheduled to take place on Sunday in Bergenfield, has been postponed until Sept. 12.

Tommy Reilly, president of the Council of Irish Associations, the organizer of the parade, said the decision to postpone was made Wednesday because of concerns over the coronavirus pandemic.

“In the interest of public safety, we’ll postpone for now,” Reilly said. “You don’t want to host an event that would possibly endanger people.”

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The grand marshal for this year’s parade is Cardinal Joseph W. Tobin, the leader of the Newark Archdiocese.

The Bergenfield parade typically draws upward of a thousand spectators, who line Washington Avenue in the borough's downtown.

It was also announced Wednesday that the state's largest St. Patrick's Day parade, scheduled to be held in Morristown on Saturday, was canceled and the New York City parade on Fifth Avenue seemed to be in limbo.

The parade in Morristown typically draws crowds of 50,000.

A joint statement by Morristown officials and parade organizers said, “We are disappointed by the decision, but it was entirely necessary. We’ve been cautiously optimistic that the parade could still go forward, but as other towns and cities across the country take the difficult but necessary step to cancel their events, we must as well in Morris County.”

Newark postponed its parade as well, sending a short statement late Wednesday night, just two days before it was scheduled.

"While disappointed, we are actively working to reschedule the event in September, billed as the 85th and-a-halfway to St. Patrick’s Day Parade," wrote the parade committee's publicity chair, Brian Lowe.

Ricardo Kaulessar is a local reporter for NorthJersey.com. For unlimited access to the most important news from your local community, please subscribe or activate your digital account today.

Email: kaulessar@northjersey.com Twitter: @ricardokaul